Looking In a Mirror
by Striped Leopard 626
Summary: Looking in his eyes was like looking into a mirror of herself. She promised to make him strong, to help him defeat Itachi. Has Sasuke finally found a home again, after so long by himself? Slightly AU KakashiOC, implied ItachiOC
1. Chapter 1

_Okay, so recently I've been watching a whole lot of Naruto, cause I found out that people uploaded episodes to youtube, and I've been having a grand ol' time, until Sasuke leaves. Grr on him. So, I decided to write this to make myself feel better. I'll be posting the next chapter soon, if you guys like it.

* * *

_

Only so I'm not like Itachi. That's why I let him live. Sasuke told himself as he ran through the forest._ I **don't **care. _

Suddenly, something slammed into his stomach and sent him flying into a tree. He bounced, splinters flying around him as he dropped to the ground, eyes searching for his attacker, even as he landed. _Could Naruto. . . ? _No. Naruto couldn't have recovered that fast.

A figure dropped down in front of him as he stood out of the crouch in which he'd landed, and just stood there.

"Who are you?!" He demanded. "Show yourself, coward!"

"Strange," The figure replied, stepping forward. The moonlight fell across the young woman's face, catching in her blue eyes. She was watching him carefully. "That you should be the one to call _me_ a coward." Sasuke's eyes shot wide open, as she shifted, the moonlight illuminating her headband. A Konoha leaf symbol.

"What do you know about me?" He snapped. She lifted an eyebrow.

"Everyone in Konoha knows about you by now, Uchiha Sasuke." She said. "You're almost as famous as your brother." Sasuke growled low in his throat, but didn't respond. "And now, you're respected just about as much." She smirked, but the mirth didn't reach her eyes. They were still flat and cool as they watched him. As he stared at her, he could see something else behind the blank expression. Empathy. She had the same eyes as him.

"You're a coward, plain and simple." She went on. "You're running away from that which separates you from him. You're running away from your friends. You attacked your best friend, and left him for dead. You used him to test yourself, like Itachi did to your family." Sasuke's hands were clenching into fists, his entire body trembling with fury. She was comparing him to Itachi.

There was not comparison. _I'm nothing like him!!_ His mind screamed. _Nothing!_

"You're becoming consumed in your quest for power. For vengeance." She moved forward, and Sasuke caught sight of the ANBU mask hanging from her belt, the two katana strapped in an X on her back. "You want power, but going to Orochimaru is just a quick fix. The Sound ninja all had the same power as you. They all had a bloodline limit, and the same curse seals. Yet, somehow, a handful of genin and a single chunnin from our village managed to defeat them. What makes you think that curse mark will make you powerful enough to kill Itachi?"

"Don't talk as if you know me." Sasuke said, his voice shaking. "You don't."

"You may be right." She said. "I don't know you, but I was once in you place, searching for vengeance for my parents, closure for me. I ignored the friends who were there to help me, left them behind. I left the only family I had left, the only one who could really understand me alone." She folded her arms over her chest. "So don't tell me I don't know what I'm talking about. I know exactly how much you thirst to see Itachi's blood spilt, how much you want enough power to kill him."

"Shut up!" He lunged at her, and hit only air with his chidori.

"A careless move." A katana was against his throat, the blade biting gently into the skin of his neck. Her half-gloved hand was pressed against the nape of his neck, preventing any movement. "That curse seal will not help you kill him." She said. The katana disappeared. "Your sensai could defeat you this way. What makes you think that you can kill Itachi this way?"

"Shut up!" She sheathed her katana in a flash, and knocked his blow to the side. It struck a tree, which splintered around his hand and fell. She didn't blink.

"You're just a little brat."

"Shut up!"

"You're no better than Naruto, that selfish, dead-last idiot."

"I said shut up!" The seal was taking over. He could feel the power flooding through him. "I'll make you!"

"Try." She said. "Go ahead and try and kill me, Uchiha. But remember one thing. If you somehow manage to kill me, you're destroying any chance you have of ever returning to Konoha. Any plans you thought you had, any dreams you planed on living, will be gone." Sasuke stared at her. "If you thought that you'd just get this power, kill Itachi and go back home to your village and your friends, you're wrong." Her eyes narrowed. "You're going to be declared a missing-nin, Uchiha, and then all those dreams you had, you made will be gone forever."

_Awakened from my idiotic dreaming about a future, of staying with friends who are used to peace._

He had thought of that future, glimpsed it through the blinding hatred and painful loneliness. Those glimpses had come at the strangest times. When Sakura hugged him, not as a fan-girl, but as his friend. When Naruto shouted at his teasing, and when Kakashi-sensai had shown up late for training, and been chastised by Sakura.

He shook his head. No. She was making him question himself. The curse seal took over, and he leapt at her.

He didn't even see her move, but he was flat on his back, completely pinned, the tip of her katana pressed to his throat. She hadn't even broken a sweat.

"You've got three options, Uchiha." She said. "One; kill me, and go to Orochimaru." She folded her arms over her chest. "Two; come back to your village with me and apologize to everyone. Three; you attack me again, and I drag your lifeless body back to Konoha with me, before the last Uchiha is branded as a traitor, and besmirches your family name forever!" She got up off of him, sheathing her katana again.

"How did you do that?" Sasuke asked, rubbing his shoulder. He hadn't even seen her move, even with the sharingan.

"Training." She replied. "Long hours with lots of pain." She met his eyes. "I finally got my vengeance, quenched my thirst for blood. Do you want to satisfy yours?"

"What are you saying?"

"I'm saying that if you come back with me, and let me train you-"

"You'll give me the power to defeat Itachi, right?"

"Wrong." His eyes narrowed. "The kind of power you want cannot be just given. If you kill Itachi with power from Orochimaru, you'll never feel satisfied. It wouldn't be you who defeated him. I will teach you how to get what you want." He nodded. "But there is one thing. You keep talking of power, but power alone is not going to defeat Itachi. If there is one thing he truly does not understand, it is the fierce need to protect, the strength that comes from that need." She walked over and stood right in front of him, peering down at him. She was actually rather short, for an adult, only about a head taller than he was.

"Ever wonder why your teammate was so strong?" She asked. "Naruto isn't that powerful, and he doesn't know as many jutsu as you. So how did he almost beat you?" Sasuke didn't have an answer, so she just kept going. "He just wouldn't give up, would he? He nearly beat you. An idiot nearly beat a genius Uchiha." Her face lost its hardness. "Do you know why?"

"No." He bit out.

"Because he cares. He cares about you, and he cares about his village. That is why he is always going to be stronger than you, at least until you realize it. Until then, you can never truly be strong." She sat back on her heels. "Even if you go to Orochimaru, there will still be people stronger than you because they care."

"How-"

"You were already on your way." She said, stepping away from him again. "You just couldn't see it. Naruto affected you more than you think. You were staring to care about the village, the people in it. That's why you couldn't bring yourself to kill him."

"How do you know so much?" He demanded.

"Because I watched it happen to another." She said. "Only in reverse." Her face dropped in grief and pain. "I watched a colleague sink away from me, and I did nothing to stop him."

"Itachi." She nodded.

"He was my ANBU squad leader for a while." She said. "I saw him take that plunge, and I will not watch another Uchiha tarnish the name so many heroes carry." Her face softened, and Sasuke watched as she stepped within arms reach of him again. "If you want, I will turn you into a hero. But you have to let me show you the way." She held out her hand. He stared at it for a long moment before grasping it with his own bloody one.

* * *

Naruto opened his eyes and looked up at the ceiling. Kakashi was standing near the open window, his silver hair rippling in the breeze.

"Sensai. . ." Kakashi's eye shifted over to him. "Sasuke?" The jounin shook his head, and Naruto felt himself slipping into unconsciousness again.

The door slid open, and two figures stepped out of the shadows. He started in surprise, but made no other move.

"This is the evidence you asked for." The woman with him pointed to the bed. "If you had gone to Orochimaru, the next time you met Naruto, you would have killed him, instead of just leaving him like this." She watched her words sink in, well aware that the eye of the jounin in the corner was fixed on her and the boy. "I can teach you power, I can teach you control, but I cannot teach you to care. That is something that must be learned from a loved one, like this boy. It is something that Itachi never learned. He does not understand how fierce the need to protect another can really make a person." She looked back at Sasuke. "Come on." She set her jaw. "We need to see Lady Hokage so she doesn't declare you a missing-nin." She paused in the doorway.

"Kakashi-san, I hope you don't mind me taking your student." She gave him a small bow and slid the door shut.

* * *

Tsunade jerked up off her desk as her door opened without so much as a knock. She froze when the young woman entered though. "Masami." She blinked. "What are you doing here?"

"I think you lost something." The younger woman reached back into the hallway, and pulled a boy inside. Tsunade gasped. "You no longer have need to worry, Tsunade-sama. He's agreed to let me train him, and if he tries to leave the village again, you won't have to send the hunter-nin after him." Her blue eyes narrowed. "I'll will kill him myself."

"As long as you keep your promise to train me." Sasuke said. "I only have one purpose in life." He didn't have time to duck her hand as she slapped it against the back of his head. He flinched.

"That is the kind of talk that landed you here." She said sternly. "And I am going to change that." She suddenly smiled at him. "You are moving in with my family."

"What?!"

* * *

New chapter coming soon. Let me know what you thought. 


	2. Chapter 2

A/n: Geez. Sorry it's been so long guys. I've gotten so caught up in writing this thing that I forgot to update for you guys to read. Thanks to my friend Lady Rin-san for beta-ing this for me, and pointing out the bagillions of basic grammatical errors I made. Luv ya all!

* * *

"Nii-san!" she shut the door behind her, frowning."He should be home. . ." she scowled. "Nii-san!"

There was a thud from the back of the house, and a shadowy figure stumbled forward.

"Masami-chan, what's going on?"

"Iruka-sensei?!" The light snapped on, and Iruka stared at Sasuke in total shock.

"Nii-san, Sasuke will be staying with us. I'm taking over his training, to see if I can teach him anything," Iruka was still speechless. "Now be useful and make up the guest room," she shooed him away and steered Sasuke into the kitchen, seating him at the table.

"You need to sleep," she said."You're exhausted and you're going to fall over any second," she handed him a warm mug.He peered down at it suspiciously. "Warm milk with a touch of cinnamon," she said, sitting down with her own mug of the stuff. "It will put you right to sleep."

"Why are you doing this?" he asked quietly. "You seem to hate me."

"Don't be ridiculous," she said."I don't hate you. You already _are _strong Sasuke, no matter what you think about yourself, I can see it. You came back here, even after hurting so many. That takes a lot of courage," she tilted her head, studying him. "After being alone for so many years, this is going to take some getting used to, but I think you'll come to like living here."

She looked up as Iruka stuck his head back into the room. "His bed's made, onee-chan," He yawned.

"Thank you, Iruka-kun," she said."You can go back to sleep now," he muttered something under his breath as he hit his shin on a low table on his way. "Be careful!" She chuckled, and took a sip of her milk. Sasuke eyed his mug suspiciously.

"I didn't poison it," she said. He looked up at her sharply. "If that's what you're thinking. If I wanted to kill you, I would have left you in that forest. I wouldn't have taken the time and energy to bring you all the way back here."

"But why did you do it?" he asked."And don't lie again."

Her eyebrow lifted. "You want the real truth?" he nodded. "Drink your milk," she sat back in her chair, setting her empty mug on the table.

"My parents were killed by the Kyuubi," she leaned forward. "Iruka was barely nine, and I was only thirteen, a simple chunnin," she ran a hand through her hair, pulling off her headband. "But I was smart enough to know that a demon like that doesn't just pop up out of nowhere and attack a village," her eyes hardened again. "Someone had to set it free, summon it from another realm. So I trained as hard and long as I could.Sometimes I'd go for days without taking a rest. My best friend was the one to take care of me when I'd passed out. He was the one to bring me home to my brother, who would take care of my wounds. I'd be laid up for days, and still he would come to take care of me. I had been trying to turn myself into an avenger, to avenge my parent's death," she suddenly fell silent, and Sasuke leaned forward.

"Did you find out who it was?"

She looked up at him."It was my own sensei. The man I looked up to the most in my life had betrayed our village, betrayed _me_." She met his eyes again."And when I faced Orochimaru down, I realized that I had become exactly like him. I didn't care about anything but killing him," She paused for a second, glancing toward the door Iruka had disappeared through."I almost did it too," She smiled faintly. "He'd already been fighting Jiraiya-sama, so he was weak and running low on chakra. I had my katana at his throat, and I was ready to cut it. Iruka appeared then, out of nowhere." She shook her head. "I don't know how he found me, but I'm glad he did. He'd tried to make me into him. My sensei had been pushing me to get stronger, telling me that one day, I would challenge the man I sought and I would defeat him, but only if I gained more power."

She paused again. "Finish the milk," Sasuke drank it absentmindedly, focused on her story. "The truth is, I wouldn't have been able to kill him then. He was just toying with me. He wanted to test me, see if I could. When he realized that I couldn't bring myself to in front of my brother, he called me weak." She suddenly smiled."Then my best friend came." She shook her head, brushing her brown hair over her shoulder."Kakashi saved my life, taking Iruka and me away from Orochimaru." She suddenly stood.

"You should know, that going after you was Kakashi's idea," she said. "So it doesn't surprise you later. But when I found you, saw you, I realized that you were just like me. You lost everything, and you were ready to lose everything all over again because you couldn't see what was right in front of you. You're going to be in pain for a long time Sasuke," He looked up at her sharply as she lay a hand on his shoulder. "But you don't have to do it alone anymore."

* * *

Sasuke woke the next morning to find sunlight filtering through heavy white curtains.It took him a long moment to remember where he was. 

He sat up, blinking the sleep away as he heard someone moving in the kitchen downstairs. Sliding out of bed, he padded down the hall and down the stairs to the kitchen. Masami was standing over the stove, humming to herself as she stirred something.

. He shook his head, his thoughts trailing to Naruto. _What have I done?_

"I told Kakashi-san that we'd be stopping by the hospital to check on Naruto this morning," She said without turning around. She scooped some ramen into a bowl and stuck a pair of chopsticks in it. Then she turned and handed him the bowl. "Here. Eat up. We're starting your training today," she smiled."And I'm going to work you to the bone."

* * *

Sasuke stared down at the prone form of his friend and teammate. Kakashi had been there again, but Masami had just touched his shoulder, and the jounin had left. He blinked, his eyes suddenly feeling too dry. . 

He turned away from the bed and stepped out into the hall. He didn't want to see any more. He didn't want the guilt that lay on him like a thick, oppressive fog. Masami was speaking to Kakashi in low tones, but he could still hear her. "The blond kid. He really reminds me of Obito-san," she smiled, resting a hand on the jounin's shoulder. "And he's doing for Sasuke what Obtio did for you."

"Obtio-san, and you, Masami-chan."

"Are you ready Sasuke?" his eyes widened. She hadn't even turned around yet. "Because if you're not--"

"I'm ready," Sasuke bit out. "Just show me how to kill Itachi."

She turned to him now, folding her arms over her chest. "The power you want me to teach you is something I can't do," she said."I told you before. You want it the easy way. If you want easy, then go to Orochimaru. Of course I will have to kill you then, but hey, at least you tried right?" he stared at her."Remember what I told you last night. I spent years training until I passed out, then training as soon as I woke up. This kind of power takes years to obtain," She stepped toward him."Are you ready to sweat, to be hurt and to face death? Because if you aren't, then I can't teach you."

"Masami-san, this is all--"

"Kakashi-chan, please. This is his decision. He's not your student anymore." She turned back to him. "You're my best friend, but there are things you just don't understand, like vengeance."

She looked back at Sasuke. "So what's your decision?"

"I'm ready."

* * *

Sasuke dropped to his knees. She hadn't been kidding when she'd told him she'd work him to the bone. He'd been working with her for two weeks, and he was so exhausted he thought he was going to just fall into a million pieces right there on the field. 

He looked up at her through his hair. She was standing with her arms folded over her chest, watching him.

In the past two weeks, he'd seen two different sides of her. He'd seen the soft person she was with Iruka-sensei and the rest of the people she loved, and the ninja she really was, sparring all day with him without any signs of fatigue.

He struggled to his feet, not wanting her to think he was weak. She was anything but weak, and he couldn't help but to want to show her _his _strength. His limbs felt heavy, more tired than they had ever been in his life.

Her face softened and she moved forward, catching him as he fell back down. She lay him out, blue eyes narrowed in concern. She lifted each arm in turn, taking the weights off. She did the same with his legs.

"Gai may be many things, but wrong he isn't," she dropped the weights to the ground."Living and training with these on will make your body adjust to their weight, and when you take them off, you will move faster than you ever thought possible," she slung his arm around her shoulders and lifted him to his feet.

"Come on. I don't really want to carry you the entire way. We're done for today."

They made their way through the streets toward home.

He allowed himself a small smile as she helped him into the house. He could smell dinner, which meant that Iruka was home. 

Masami was actually not a very good cook when it came to things other than ramen, but his old teacher had surprised him with a delicious dinner almost every night.

Masami set him down in one of the chairs surrounding the table and set out the dishes and chopsticks for them all.

After dinner, she helped him upstairs to his room and set him down on his bed. "Don't move." She ordered, and left the room. She returned a few seconds later, a bowl of water in her hands. She set it down on the bedside table and dunked a cloth in it. She wrung it out, then turned and sat down next to him. She took his chin between her hands and tilted it this way and that, cleaning out his cuts. He winced every so often, but he never complained.

She did this all silently, then frowned at him. Without a word, she picked up a brush and took some of his hair in her hands, brushing the knots out of his hair. He froze.

His mother used to do that.

He grabbed her wrist."I can do that myself," he said. She met his eyes, then relinquished the brush to him.

"Take tomorrow morning off," she said, her voice soft as she brushed a lock of hair out of his face. "You need the rest and I have a few things to do. Iruka will leave you some breakfast," Impulsively, she leaned down and planted a swift kiss on his forehead before leaving.

Sasuke stared after her, and when the door closed, he lifted his eyes skyward and stared up at the white ceiling above his head. There were so many new things in his life, all moving so fast.

Two weeks in the Umino household with the two siblings, and he already felt at home.Masami reminded him a lot of Naruto at times, grinning and hyper. Most times though, she remained brooding and quiet. He'd caught her staring up at the sky, watching nothing in particular, a sadness in her eyes that he didn't quite understand.

But there were those rare brilliant smiles that lit up her face and reached her eyes. The first time he'd seen it was when he'd accidentally called her onee-san.

Smiling, he rolled over and slipped into sleep.

* * *

"Kakashi-chan." He looked up as she stepped into the room. Alone.

"Where's Sasuke?"

"Sleeping," she replied. "How is he?" she nodded toward the sleeping boy.

"He's fine. He should have been released days ago. Tsunade-sama just wants him to stay here for a while," the jounin replied. Masami sighed.

"Kakashi--"

"I know he's changed," he shifted his eye to look at her. "And it's because of you. I know that you only went after him as a favor to me, but--"

"It turned personal," she said."I'm not letting Orochimaru take another Konoha shinobi and twist them into something so ugly they're not even recognizable."

Kakashi got to his feet and moved over to stand next to her. "Masami-chan, you were never ugly."

She glared at him and knocked his hand off her shoulder. "Flirt."

His eyebrow twitched."Prude."

"Bitch."

"Jerk." She sighed and glanced over at the sleeping boy.

"Is Jiraiya-sama going to take over his training?" Kakashi nodded.

"And Tsunade-sama is taking Sakura on as a student," Kakashi said. "I'm not sure what I'm going to do with myself."

"I could use help training Sasuke," she replied. "Especially since I don't know as much as you about the Sharingan."

"When you think he is ready, I will help."

"Good. You can pick him up from my house and bring him to the training field. I have some scrolls to pick up from the archives," impulsively, she leaned forward and pressed her lips against the mask over his cheek, then left the room.

Kakashi's lips twitched into a smile.

"Masami-chan!" she looked up and blue eyes snapped wide as she tried to jump out of the way.It was too late, and the young Uchiha tackled her to the ground in a tight hug.

"Obito-san!" she shoved him off, and got to her feet, collecting the fallen books from her hands."Look what you did!" Obito just grinned at her, slinging an arm around her shoulders.

"Why are you always studying anyway?" he asked. She glared at him, trying to bend down to pick up more books. He held her firmly in place. "All those books won't help you in the field."

"Here," she glanced over and smiled at Obito's teammate and her best friend, Kakashi, and took the books he'd picked up.

"Thanks," she said, meeting those soft brown eyes over his mask "Kakashi-chan," she could see the smile in those brown eyes.

"Masami-chan, you're a chunnin now. You don't need those stupid books anymore," Obito said, poking the offending items.She made a face at him.

"Oh, and you know exactly where on a leg to hit with a kunai to make that leg useless Obito-san?" Kakashi said.Obito's face flushed and he glared at his teammate.

"Shut up," he muttered. He let his arm fall, and the three lapsed into silence as they walked. "So how is that brother of yours?" Masami glared at the young chunin. She knew that he didn't dislike her brother, but didn't exactly like him either. Her brother had been the class clown, always trying to get a laugh out of everyone. She knew it was because of their parent's death. She wasn't around a lot anymore, and her brother never let her forget it.

"Fine," she said, shrugging. "I guess."

still 

He unlocked the door to Masami's house and stepped inside. "Sasuke?" he looked around, panicking slightly at the silence in the house. "Sasuke?"

"Sensei?" he turned to find Sasuke behind him, a paper bag full of groceries in his arms. "What are you doing here?"

"Masami-san asked me to pick you up and bring you to the training field. I'm supposed to help her train you."

"You've already trained me," Sasuke replied, shutting the door behind him. He disappeared into the kitchen.

"I said she asked me to _help_. If you don't want me there, then I can just tell her no," he leaned on the door frame, watching the young man put the food away. "Apparently I know more about the uses of the Sharingan than she does. She thought it might help."

"Fine," Sasuke turned to his old teacher. "Let's go then."

* * *

Masami smiled down at the scroll. This was exactly the one she wanted. Turning, she started to leave the archives when a white-haired man blocked her path. 

"Masami," he folded his arms over his chest. "What are you doing?"

"Giving Sasuke a chance to take the hard path to strength," she replied. "Instead of Orochimaru's way."

"That boy has a darkness in him," the sannin replied. "It's something you cannot erase."

"That's exactly what you said about me back then, remember?" she shot back."And look at me now."

"Yes. Look at yourself. You are a brilliant kunochi, and you give brilliant speeches, but I wanted to ask you if you really meant all the things you keep telling that boy."

"Jiraiya-sama, I mean every word I say to him," she replied fiercely.

"Then open your heart to him. It's still closed off to those around you." With that, the sannin vanished.

She stared at the spot where he had stood for a long time. Then, turning, she mutttered, "Stupid ero-sannin," under her breath.

* * *

Kakashi sighed, sliding his hands into his pockets as Masami landed next to him. "You're la-ate." 

"Shut up Kakashi-chan," she held up a scroll. "This is what I went after in the archives." Kakashi took it from her hand and opened it far enough to read the top few lines.

"Masami-chan," he breathed. "You know that this--"

Her face darkened and she cut him off. "I know exactly what this is," she snapped. Sasuke watched the two of them in surprise. They were bickering like an old married couple. "We'll talk about this later," she reached over her shoulders and drew her katana. She handed one to Sasuke, then turned to Kakashi.

"How about you see how much your student has improved." She said with a smirk, and stepped back. "Go ahead Sasuke." She handed him an elastic tie, and he pulled his hair back out of his face. Then he looked up at his old sensei.

Kakashi reached up and lifted his headband off his eye. "I've got a feeling I'm going to need this. . ." he murmured.

The two bowed to each other, then Sasuke lunged, faster than he'd anticipated. He jumped back, and chanced a quick glance over at Masami, standing on the sidelines. She was grinning, watching her student with pride.

He brought the katana up to block Sasuke's attack and tried to land a punch, only to have his fist meet air. He spun, blocking the attack from behind.

That was when he saw the weights next to Masami's feet. _Using Gai's old trick, is she?_ He danced back again, and tried to land a kick. He met air again as Sasuke ducked, and slammed his leg into the back of Kakashi's. 

He flipped, using the momentum to spin him in the air, and landed, frowning at Sasuke. He was getting very good, very fast.

. 

He ducked a fist and nearly gasped. Sasuke had concentrated his chakra in his fist.

If that had hit me, I'd have been out for a week!

He jumped back away across the field, but only had time to blink as Sasuke came after him again.A foot caught him in the stomach and an arm pinned him to a tree a second later.

Sasuke stared at him for a long moment, then did something that completely threw Kakashi off.

He grinned.

"Ahhhh!" he barely had time to blink before Masami had swept the boy up into a hug and swung him around in a circle.He grinned under his mask, pressing a hand to the already growing bruise on his stomach. "You're awesome!" she grinned brilliantly, holding the boy out at arms length finally. "Sasuke-san, that was amazing," the usually stoic young man's face twitched as he fought down a grin."I'm so proud of you!"

Sasuke froze. He hadn't heard that for a long time.

Not since Itachi had killed his family.

He looked up at the beautiful young woman who was training him, and suddenly didn't even bother fighting the grin. He had a family again.


	3. Chapter 3

Naruto frowned at Iruka. "Were are we going?" he asked. Iruka didn't answer him. He just looked worried. "Iruka-sensei?"

"There's someone who wants to see you," he said. Naruto's nerves rose. Iruka's voice was shaking.

"Who?"

"My sister. She wanted to ask you something," he walked up to a house and pushed open the door. "Onee-chan!" he called, shutting it behind the two of them.

"In here nii-chan!" she shouted from somewhere in the house. "Did you bring him?"

"Yes."

"Good. Dinner's almost ready. Hey! No snitching!"

"Hey. I was not snitching, lady."

Naruto ran into the kitchen. "Sensei?!" he found him cornered by an annoyed-looking woman.

"Either stop snitching or I won't feed you!" she turned icy blue eyes on the boy in the doorway. "You must be Naruto," she beamed at him, then stuck her head out into the hallway. "Dinner's almost ready!"

"What is it tonight?" Naruto froze at the voice filtering down the stairs. He knew that Kakashi-sensei had told him that Sasuke had been brought home and was staying with a friend of his, but he hadn't really believed him.

"Ramen! We've got a visitor!"

"Are you counting Kakashi-sensei again?" Sasuke's voice was getting closer.

"No. I never count Kakashi-chan as a guest," she replied. "He's just a pest."

"Hey!" Kakashi glared at her, and she stuck out her tongue in return.

"WHAT'S GOING ON HERE?!" Masami turned to Naruto with a glare so fierce that he took a step back.

"No yelling," she said calmly, suddenly behind him. He let out a yelp and whipped around.

A strange sound met his ears and he turned to look at Sasuke to find him. . . laughing?

"Hey!" he pointed a finger in Sasuke's face. "Who are you and what've you done with Sasuke?!"

He stopped laughing and knocked Naruto's hand away, scowling. "It's me you idiot," He said, glaring at the other boy.

"HEY! WHO ARE YOU CALLING AN IDIOT?!"

"You."

Kakashi grabbed Naruto by the back of his jacket and shoved him back toward the table. "Sit down. Masami-chan made ramen."

"RAMEN!"

"WHAT DID I SAY ABOUT YELLING?!" Masami was suddenly in front of Naruto. The boy screamed and stumbled backward into Iruka. He blinked a few times as she turned back around.

Kakashi out a hand on his shoulder. "Naruto, meet Umino Masami, Sasuke's new teacher," Naruto stared at the woman laying out chopsticks on the table and scowled.

"She doesn't look like much," he muttered.

"I heard that," Naruto let out another yelp as he turned to face Masami who was suddenly behind him again.

"How'd you DO THAT?!"

"Years and years of arduous practice." She grinned. "I used to scare nii-chan and Kakashi-chan when we were younger."

"And now I can scare you." Naruto reeled around and crashed into the wall as Sasuke appeared behind him.

"HOW'D YOU DO THAT?!"

Iruka sighed and pinned Naruto to him, a hand over the boy's mouth. "If you don't be quiet, she's going to throw you out of here and chop off your head with her katana," he muttered. Naruto eyed the woman who was glaring at Kakashi, and only doubted it for about three seconds. He relaxed, and Iruka let him go.

The rest of the meal passed in relative peace. When they had all finished, Masami cleared her throat. Everyone turned to look at her as she lifted a scroll up in her hand.

"Sasuke, do you really want to get away from Orochimaru?" she asked. She met his dark eyes from across the table.

Without a second's hesitation, Sasuke nodded. "Good. Because this is your last chance to back out. I'm giving you a chance to get rid of that curse seal completely."

"WHAT?!" Naruto choked.

"Shut up," Sasuke said. He held her gaze. "How do you know you can remove it?"

"It's been done successfully only once before." She replied. "But, there is considerable risk to those performing it. The last time this jutsu was performed, one of the ninja came very close to dying."

"If I remember correctly, so did the subject," Kakashi added darkly. Masami shot him a silencing glance, then looked back as Sasuke.

"The pain will be intense," she said. "You won't be able to move very much for at the very least a week afterward, and you risk your life and those performing it." She held his eyes. "We are willing to risk it if you are."

"What's going on?" Naruto asked. No one answered him.

"This is your one chance to get that seal off," she said.

"How do I know it will work?" Sasuke asked. "Can we talk to the pople who performed it before? Maybe--" He cut himself off as Masami yanked the collar of her shirt aside, revealing a scar in the shape of the curse mark.

"This is how I know," The room was suddenly so still and so silent that Sasuke was sure that everyone could hear his heart beating. "He marked me just after I chose not to kill him," Her voice was shaking. "The only way this jutsu can work is if three people perform it. Two of them actually do the jutsu, and the third is the anchor. All the third person has to do is keep the subject anchored in this world."

"What does that mean?" Iruka asked.

Masami's face darkened, and she looked so serious that Naruto found himself speechless. "When the jutsu is performed, the subject's soul is literally ripped from the body as the jutsu scours the energy of the curse seal from the subject's body."

Naruto, Sasuke, and Iruka stared at her in horror. "You-you went through that?" Iruka stammered.

She nodded. "I wanted every piece of my _sensei_ gone from me," she said bitterly. "The one catch about this jutsu is that you have to have someone close enough to your heart to keep your soul here," she broke eye contact with Sasuke, and looked down at her hands. "Essentially, someone you love must be your anchor."

"But--"

"Sasuke, the only person who can anchor you is Naruto."

"WHAT?!" The two boys leapt up at the same time. "You've got to be kidding me!" They turned and glared at each other.

"Wait. Who was your anchor then?" Iruka asked. "I mean, since it wasn't me." He sounded a little hurt by that fact.

The two boys fell silent. "I. . ." she sighed heavily. "Nii-chan, you were too young."

"But--"

"I was the anchor," Kakashi said, almost lightly. "They wanted to use you, but I couldn't let them risk you." Everybody stared at him. Suddenly Masami got to her feet and left the room.

"Iruka, understand that this was right after you stopped her from killing him. You saw her. She had to be tied down to keep her from trying to tear her own skin off," Naruto just stared at Kakashi, completely clueless. "By the time that the Third decided to try the jutsu, she barely knew who anybody was. She just kept trying to tear the mark off her neck."

"But--"

"The only way I could keep her sane and anchored was to take her through every shared memory we had." He went on. "When the jutsu is performed, the anchor and the subject essentially meld their minds together," a small smile creased the skin around his one visible eye. "The first memory that started bringing her back to reality was the one of the first time she saw you, Iruka."

Kakashi paused for a minute, fighting back the swell of memories before going on. "Naruto, the only way this jutsu can work is if you agree to anchor Sasuke. You're the only one who can do it."

Naruto sighed, folding his arms over his chest. "I don't really understand all this, but I'll do it!"

"What?" Sasuke whipped around to face the boy sitting next to him. "You-you--"

"It's settled then." Masami walked back in and sat down like Kakashi hadn't said anything. "I just talked with Jiraiya-sama. He agreed to help."

"Wait. I thought--"

"You've already done this Kakashi." She said quietly, looking down at her hands folded in her lap. "I put you through enough then. I'm not doing it again."

"It's my choice, my life I put at risk for my student."

She raised her eyes to his face, not moving her head. "He's not your student anymore."

"Will you all just SHUT UP!" Sasuke leapt to his feet. "Don't fight like this!" Naruto froze, staring at his friend.

"Sasuke-kun, please." Masami rose slowly to her feet. "This is a dangerous jutsu that--"

"If Kakashi-sensei wants to do it, let him." Sasuke said. "And the same goes for you and Naruto. I can't take all this shouting!" He turned and stalked out of the room.

"He's. . . different." Naruto said, staring after his friend. Before Sasuke had left, none of that would have bothered him that much, or at least he wouldn't have shown it. Naruto eyed Masami. Did she have some sort of magical pwoers that none of them knew about? Maybe she was using mind control or something.

No, he decided. She was Iruka's sister, so she had to be a pretty cool person. She woudn't be trying to control Sasuke. Yet, there was an undeniable difference in Sasuke.

Maybe, just maybe she had opened the older boy's eyes to just how many people he had in his life who cared about him enough to put their lives on the line for him.

Kakashi stood to go after him, but Masami pushed him out of the way and left the room.

She found Sasuke leaning against a tree, breathing heavily. He was soaked completely through from the rain pouring down. _When did that start?_ She wondered. He spun to face her.

"I don't--" He broke off, and she grabbed his hands. As she'd thought, his knuckles were bruised and bloodied from punching the tree. "I don't understand why you're all--"

"Because we love you," she said. His eyes widened as he turned to look at her. "How could we not?" he blinked the rain out of his eyes. She dropped his hands and smoothed his hair back out of his face. "I know what you're going through," she said quietly. "Never forget that. I know that you're used to shoving all your feelings aside, and when they all come flooding through like this, it scares you," he blinked, tears mixing with the rain trailing down his face.

"I. . ."

"You don't have to go through his alone," she said, pulling him into a hug. Hesitantly, he slid his arms around her too, burying his face in her shoulder. She just held onto him tighter. "You're never alone. Not anymore. No one should ever be alone."

* * *

"_Get it off! Let me take it off!" She screamed, writhing in pain. "Let me get the fucking thing off of me! I reek of him!" She pulled against the restraints, but to no avail. She couldn't get loose. The mark felt like it was burning straight through her flesh and right into her very soul. She screamed, thrashing as she tried to reach it. _

"_Masami-chan!" strong hands pressed down on her shoulders. "You're going to hurt yourself!" She could hear the panic in his voice, but it seemed to be coming from so far away. _

"_Just get it off!" she screamed, trying to get loose. _

"_Hokage-sama!" she heard the shout. "We have to do it!" _

"_Kakashi, I cannot allow it." _

"_But--"_

"_Sarutobi-Sensei, if we're to do this, we must do it now!" _

"_Hokage-sama, please!" _

_That last voice. "Kakashi-chan!" she couldn't see. She couldn't see anything anymore. It was all black. Everything was black. "Get it off of me! It. . . It hurts!" _

"_Masami-chan," the voice was choked with pain, strangled. _

"_Okay," the deeper, older voice rasped. "We'll perform it. We just need an anchor. Jiraiya, fetch her brother."_

"_No!" the hands grabbed her shoulders again. "I'll anchor her! Don't bring him into this!" _

"_Kakashi, she needs someone--"_

"_I know! We're best friends! We've been best friends since we were two! I can do it! Her brother doesn't need to see her like this!" _

_She let out another scream. She could still feel him in every pore of her body. He was under her skin. He was everywhere, just waiting to strike._

"_Hokage-sama, please!" _

"_All right." _

* * *

Masami padded into the kitchen and froze. "Sasuke-kun, what are you doing?"

"Making breakfast," he replied. "What's it look like?"

"Like . . . the kitchen exploded . . . " he turned around and surveyed all the items spread out over the counters.

"Oh. Well, I couldn't exactly decide what to make. . ." he looked down. "I don't really know what went on between Kakashi-sensei and Iruka-sensei last night, but I know I started it."

"No," she said, moving over to stand next to him. "It wasn't you. These things have been simmering for a long time. The heat just kind of got turned up on us," she raised an eyebrow, leaning over the pot.

"Now what were you trying to make?" he scowled at her.

"I don't think I know anymore," he muttered. She giggled, and he stared at her in surprise. Such a girly sound coming from Masami?

"Sorry," she said, her grin twitching. "It's just, that was too. . ." she broke down in a helpless fit of giggles, dropping to the floor. "I used to. . ." she dissolved into giggles again.

"She used to try to make breakfast every Saturday morning and ended up turning the kitchen into a war zone," Iruka said from the doorway. "It used to be my job to pick up after her."

"Shut up," she muttered, shooting her brother a glare.

"We need to talk," Iruka said. Masami sighed heavily and ruffled Sasuke's hair.

"I think the kitchen needs to be cleaned," she teased, and then followed Iruka out. Sasuke watched them. He couldn't help but feel a little left out. He knew that the two of them were siblings, and he was just there as a guest, but somehow--

"Sasuke-kun, don't start thinking like that," his head jerked up and he blinked at her. She had come back to the doorway. "Nii-chan." She stuck her tongue out at him and headed down the hall again.

_Brother. _He stared at the wall where her head had been seconds before. _She called me brother._

Iruka turned to her as she slid the door shut behind her. "Why wasn't I your anchor?" he asked. Masami looked at the ground.

"It wasn't my decision," she replied. "I wasn't exactly. . . In a position to make any decisions at that point."

"Onee-chan--"

"Iruka, you weren't there. I felt like he was inside me, in every pore of my skin. Under my skin. They had to strap me down to a table." She pulled off her gloves, and Iruka bit back a gasp. There were scars along the top of each wrist. "These are from the restraints," she said. "I was covered in my own blood from fighting so hard," Iruka looked like he might faint. "Kakashi didn't want you to see me like that. He was right. You wouldn't have been able to anchor me properly. Not after seeing that."

She turned away, and Iruka caught her shoulder. "I had no idea it was that bad," She turned to him, a small smile on her face.

"That's because I didn't want you to know," she said. "When you were younger, you blamed yourself for Mom and Dad's death. If you'd seen me like that at your age, you would have blamed yourself then too." When he started to protest, she gripped his shoulder.

"Remember who I am nii-chan," she said. "I'm your sister, and I know you better than anyone."

Suddenly tired of the tense mood, she made a face at him. He blinked in surprise as she skipped out of the room.

As she slid the door shut behind her, he grinned. Kakashi asking her to go after Sasuke had been the best thing that could have happened to both the boy and his sister.

Some cosmic, divine logic had plucked the two of them from the entirety of the human race and showed them the spark of recognition that can only exist between two like souls.

Two souls that were lost to themselves had found each other and were clinging to each other for dear life.

He smiled as he headed to the training yards. He needed to get some training in sometime.

* * *

Sasuke raced down the street. He was late. Masami would kill him. Everyone had been tense for the weeks leading up to this, and now he was late.

_Damn it! _He felt the attack coming and threw himself to the side. He spun around to face Rock Lee.

"Uchiha Sasuke," he said. "I heard you've gotten better since last I saw you," Sasuke picked himself up off the ground.

"What do you want?" he asked. _She's definitely going to kill me now!_

"I, Rock Lee, challenge you!" he pointed a finger in Sasuke's face.

"I don't have time for this." he muttered, shoving Lee's hand away. "Maybe some other time."

Lee's face dropped and he stared at Sasuke. "But--"

"He said some other time, kid," Lee let out a cry of surprise as he whirled around to face the woman behind him.

"Where did _you_ come from?" he asked, pointing a finger at her. She knocked his hand out of the way, eyeing him suspiciously.

"You must be Gai's student," she murmured.

"Yes!" Lee clenched his fist, slapping it to his chest. "I am indeed the most humble student of the greatest sensei in the Hidden Leaf Village!"

She glanced first right, then left. "Great. That means that he'll be--"

"And that must make you Umino Masami!" he exclaimed. She yelped and leapt back away from him, flailing. _He must have moved when I was looking for Gai_."Oh, I have heard Gai-sensei talk of you! And all those things he spoke were true!"

Sasuke watched as a change passed over Masami's face. Was she. . . nervous?

"Uh--" A muscle under her eyes twitched.

"You are indeed the most fair, beautiful flower in Konoha! Gai-sensei was correct!"

"Of course I was correct Lee!" Masami squealed and leapt up into the air, landing behind Sasuke. "I would never lie about the beauty of a woman!"

"Gai-sensei!"

"In fact, I now think that I may have under-spoken!" Sasuke glanced back at Masami and frowned.

"Sorry Gai, but we've got to go!" Sasuke jumped as she grabbed his arm and started pulling him down the street. "Bye!" She turned away and added, "you stupid bowl-headed freak" under her breath. Sasuke smirked.

She pulled him into a building behind her and shut the door. They walked up a flight of stairs to a room, where she let him go. As she moved out of the doorway, Sasuke froze. In the center of the huge room two spirals of words were printed on the floor, swirling out in graceful lines to the edges of the room. Kakashi was already standing on the end of one of them, and Masami stepped over to stand on the other one. Tsunade and Jiraiya were standing in opposite corners, faces set and grim.

"What kept you?" Kakashi asked, sitting down on the end of the spiral. Masami scowled at him.

"Gai and his student," she said darkly. Kakashi chuckled.

"Is he still stuck on you?" Kakashi asked, still chortling. Masami glared across the room at him.

"It's not funny," she shot back.

"Both of you, stop it," Tsunade ordered. "This is an incredibly complicated jutsu. If you the two of you don't keep your heads clear of any stray thoughts, then this could really go wrong!"

"Sorry Tsunade-sama," Masami said, sitting down on her own end of the spiral.

Naruto skidded into the room. "Sorry. Gai-sensei was blocking traffic. I had to take the long way around," he stared at Masami as she hit her head on the wall several times. "What? What'd I say?"

"What is it with you people?!" Tsunade shouted. Everyone turned to look at her. "All of you could die and all you can do is joke! I don't know why I'm letting the two of you perform this!" In the other corner, Jiraiya sighed.

"Tsunade, let them be. Masami is more than capable of performing this jutsu." The Hokage turned to face her old teammate, then sighed and stepped back, though she was scowling.

"Naruto," she said, pointing to the center of the spiral Kakashi sat on the outer edge of. "Sit there," for once, the boy was serious and silent as he walked over and sat down. The entire line between himself and Kakashi shot up a brilliant burst of light. He yelped and started to get up, but Masami's shout stopped him.

"Don't move!" she exclaimed. "Sasuke, sit," the boy sat on the inside of her spiral and their line gave of a brilliant burst of light too. "Now. If any one of us gets up before the jutsu is completed, we will all die," She looked around at everyone. "Got it?" There were nods all around. "Good. So don't move."

She let out a shaky breath and looked over at Kakashi. He had taken off his headband and placed it on the ground beside him. He met her with both eyes, and nodded once. She reached up and pulled off her own headband, pulling the tie out of her hair. It cascaded over her shoulders and covered her face.

Her hands flew in a succession of seals too fast for anyone in the room to follow. She began chanting under her breath, and the air in the room stirred gently. As her hands flew in a blur, the air spun faster and faster, whipping around the room. The whirlwind began to shrink. It grew smaller and smaller until it surrounded only Masami. Her hair whipped around her head, until she shouted out a final seal. Her voice was stolen in the wind as it vanished.

Breathing hard, Masami held her hands tightly in the final seal. Slowly, a light grew around her until her body was bathed entirely in a brilliant white light. Sasuke had to shield his eyes.

_What? What. . . is she? There's no way any normal person could look like that!_

Across the room, Kakashi moved his hands into his first seal position, his eyes not leaving Masami. Suddenly her head snapped up, and her hair flew out in all directions away from her face, a dark halo against the brilliant white light. _I always knew she was an angel_, he thought with a smile.

Her eyes opened, black spheres against translucent skin.

He looked down at his hands, concentrating. His hands flew in the seals and the wind swirled around him. It wasn't a whirlwind, but the air was moving. It was becoming thicker, heavier, stronger. They were suddenly a part of the world, heartbeats slowing until they matched the steady beat of the Earth.

His part was not the most powerful, but it was still important. He provided the link between Naruto and Sasuke, kept them connected.

Masami was the real power behind the jutsu. She was the fire that was going to scour that mark from Sasuke's body.

He finished his seals. "Sasuke!" The boy's eyes lifted to Masami, who was glowing even more brightly. Her voice didn't even sound like her anymore. It was a thought thousands of other voices were speaking with her. "Sasuke, grab Naruto's hands!" He nodded, and reached out to the younger boy. The two clasped hands, and an invisible force blew out away from the two of them, flattening the two sannin against the wall. Tsunade's eyes widened.

_The raw power from this jutsu,_ She squinted against the light coming from the young woman and focused on the two boys in the center. _Where is it all coming from?_

Sasuke's eyes widened as he felt every molecule of his body being squeezed together and apart at the same time. His mouth opened in a scream that echoed horribly in the room.

"Sasuke!" Naruto shouted, panicking.

"Naruto, don't move!" Masami shouted over Sasuke's scream. Her voice sounded even less like her own now. There were so many more layers to her voice, the other voices stronger now. "If you move, we're all dead!" they were all forced to close their eyes against the brilliant white light. Kakashi managed to watch with his sharingan, but even that was painful. Brilliant white wings made of light unfolded from Masami's back. He bit back a gasp. That wasn't part of the jutsu.

Sasuke's scream suddenly died in his throat, and he went limp, falling over sideways. "Sasuke!" Naruto shouted, as his body went rigid.

"Naruto!" Kakashi shouted. "Whatever you do, don't loose him! Keep him with you! Don't--"

Naruto didn't hear the rest of Kakashi's words as the brilliant light dissolved his senses.

* * *

Naruto looked around the shadowy room. _"What? Where am I?" _

"_Why are you doing this?" _He whipped around at the sound of the voice and froze, staring at the dark haired boy in front of him._ "Why brother?" _

The tall figure looked down at the little boy with calm red eyes. Naruto gasped. He'd seen that man before. Uchiha Itachi. _"Mom and Dad. Why?" _

"_Sasuke?" _

"_What are we doing here?" _Naruto yelped and whipped around to face the Sasuke he knew, who was standing right next to him.

"_HEY! If you're here, then -- ahh!" _

"_Idiot," _Sasuke muttered. _"Why this memory?" _

"_Don't know." _Naruto said, turning to stare at the frozen scene in front of him. _"Maybe it's your strongest one or something." _Sasuke turned to stare at the boy.

"_That was almost. . . smart." _It took a second to sink in.

"_Hey! Don't you insult me!"_

"_Took you long enough, idiot." _

"_You moron!" _

"_Watch it!" _

"_Hey! Get off of me!" _

"_I'll teach you to call me a--" _The two of them froze as the scene switched again.

"_Hey, he's the only one who failed." _

"_Chiyoko!"_ the girl's friend scolded her.

"_What? It's true. He's such an idiot."_

"_Yeah, he kind of is." _

Sasuke let go of Naruto's shirt and watched the younger version of the boy on the swing, by himself.

"_He's so weird," younger Naruto got up off the swing and left the school yard. He slid his hands into his pockets as he walked down the street through the people. All of them ignored him. _

"_Is this what it was like?" _Sasuke asked. Naruto didn't answer. He just watched himself walking down the road.

"_Hey! Dad wait for me!" _the two boys watched a little girl run across the street.

_Her father scooped her up into his arms and swung her around and around as she laughed. Naruto's hands clenched into fists, and he took off down the street, just running as fast as he could. _

"_That's really what it was like." _Naruto said. Sasuke stared at the boy, and the scene shifted again.

_Sasuke spun, letting out a cry as the bag flew off the chain and crashed into a tree nearby. Panting, he dropped to the ground. The dirt under his hands was soon stained a wet red from the blood seeping out of his split knuckles. _

"_I won't be weak!" he suddenly shouted, his shoulders shaking. "The next time I see him, I will kill him!" He pounded a fist into the ground. "I swear, I will kill him!" _

The scene shifted again. _"If you touch my sensei again." Naruto looked up. "I'll kill you!"_ the scene kept shifting, running through memories from both their lives.

When Itachi forced Sasuke to watch him kill the clan, Naruto put a hand on his friend's shoulder. _"You're not going anywhere," _he said.

* * *

Kakashi stared across the room at Masami. She was still glowing, but the light had faded enough that he could see her outline now. Her eyes were wide and unseeing, and her mouth was open in a silent scream, but still she held her hands together.

Panting, she slid her hands into the final seal position and mouthed the last words. With a brilliant flash of light, the words that had been carefully printed on the floor shrank and slithered up Sasuke's body like snakes. The boy's form went rigid and suddenly began to glow with a soft white light, an intangible wind blowing his hair away from his face.

Masami's anguished scream finally reached Kakashi's ears. His mind screamed for him to move, to run to her, but he forced himself to stay put. Suddenly, her cry stopped, and the light vanished. Blinking in the sudden darkness, he heard a soft thud as she hit the ground. The words faded off Saskue's body, and the light faded completely from the boy's body. He and Naruto were both still unconscious. He waited just long enough to know that the jutsu was over.

"Masami!" he leapt to his feet, racing across the room. "Masami-chan!" he pressed his fingers to her throat to check for a pulse, but Tsunade shoved him aside.

After a few moments, she sighed heavily. "She's alive."

"No kidding," Masami murmured. Tsunade found herself pushed aside, and was about to shout at Kakashi when Jiraiya put a hand on her shoulder.

Masami's eyes fluttered open. "Kakashi," he pressed a hand to her face. "S-s--" She paused, then tried again. "Sasuke?"

"He's alive," Tsunade reported. "So is Naruto."

Masami smiled, her eyes sliding closed. "It worked then," she murmured, going slack in Kakashi's arms. "It worked. . ."

"Masami!"

* * *

Iruka burst into the room. "What happened?" he grabbed the nearest person by the shirt. When he realized it was Kakashi, he shoved the jounin back into the wall.

"Let go," he said. Iruka was shaking. The jounin grabbed the younger man's wrists and pulled his hands off.

"What happened?"

"Iruka," the chunnin looked up at the Hokage as she walked into the room, her face set. "Your sister is fine," the man deflated rapidly. Kakashi gripped his shoulder, as though doing so would keep Iruka on his feet. "And you should be very proud," she said. "The last person who attempted this jutsu was a Hokage, and he was unconscious for almost a week," her eyes narrowed slightly. "Your sister managed to wake up in just a few hours."

"Can I see her?"

"Room seven," Iruka dashed out of the room.

Kakashi turned to Tsunade. She watched him, frowning. "I've never seen the like," she said. "This jutsu should have knocked her out for at least a month, and she shouldn't be able to move at all. It should have drained the both of you of chakra. Yet you're moving, and she's awake."

"Is it any wonder that Orochimaru wanted her?" Kakashi asked, sliding his hands into his pockets.

The Hokage's eyes narrowed. "You knew."

"I did."

"She doesn't seem human."

"No, she doesn't." He smiled. "She's an angel. At least, that's what Sasuke's going to think."

* * *

It was annoying, being awake and not being able to do anything.

The only thing that made it worth it was no longer being able to feel the curse mark. It was gone. Of that he was sure.

"Hey," the door slid open. "You're awake," Naruto pulled the chair over to the bed and sat down backward. "How're you feeling?"

Sasuke blinked. "I -- what are you doing here?"

The younger boy blinked at him. "Well, I just thought that I should make sure you're okay," he said with a shrug. "Make sure you're not alone."

"I'm not going to take off again," Sasuke muttered.

"I know," Sasuke looked back at Naruto in surprise. He sounded so positive.

"How can you know that?"

"I was inside your head, remember?" the younger boy poked him in the head. "I saw what you were thinking when we got to the more recent memories," Sasuke stared at him.

_Is this. . . really Naruto?_

"Like the ones about Masami-sensei, what she said to you in the forest and stuff," Naruto laced his fingers behind his head. "She's really important to you now, isn't she?" he suddenly grinned at the older boy. "Like a sister."

Sasuke looked away. "Yeah. . . I guess she is."

"There you go again, pretending like you don't care!" Sasuke turned his head to look at Naruto in surprise. "Man. You're an idiot."

"What'd you call me?!"

"Hey! Lemme go!" Naruto hadn't expected Sasuke to be able to move.

"Don't you call me an idiot, idiot!"

"That was an idiotic response!"

"Moron!"

"Come here!"

"Hey! You two, stop it!" They looked over at Masami, who was leaning against the doorway. "You're _both _moronic idiots, how about that?" She crossed her arms over her chest.

"You're not supposed to be out of bed yet!" Sasuke sat up, ignoring the glare Masami shot him.

"I'm fine," she said. "And you've got training to do yet."

"But you're--" Naruto started.

"Are you questioning me?" he whipped around to face her. _When did she move?_ He blinked, staring at the furious face in front of him.

"Yeah."

Suddenly, a grin broke over her face as she put her hands on her hips. "Good."

"WHAT?! YOU SCARE US LIKE THAT AND THEN JUST--"

"Shut up," she glared at him, and he held up his hands in surrender. "If you want to come, too, then come on."

"ME?!"

"AND STOP SHOUTING!"

"OKAY!"

"I SAID TO STOP! THAT DOESN'T MEAN YOU KEEP DOING IT!"

"OKAY!"

"WHY YOU LITTLE--!"

"AHH! GET AWAY FROM ME!! SASUKE, HELP!!" the older boy just grinned as Naruto took off down the hall, Masami racing after him.


	4. Chapter 4

A/n: Jeez, it seems like I keep apologizing at the beginning of each chapter for not updating. Well, this update you get two whole chapters! Yes! Two whole, full-length chapters!

Enjoy!

p.a/n: I don't remember how far my beta actually read, so if there are any mistakes in this, don't blame her!

* * *

"Wait, I don't get it," Masami groaned, covering her face with her hands.

"Naruto-kun, it's simple. I want you to spar with Sasuke. You can use any kind of jutsu you want, but Sasuke is only going to use taijutsu."

"Why?"

"BECAUSE I SAID SO!"

"OKAY! YOU DON'T HAVE TO SHOUT!"

"Can we just get going?" Sasuke asked. Masami straightened and glared at Naruto.

"Fine," the boy just shook his head. He didn't understand how Masami could go from screaming at Naruto one minute to the cool, un-stirable ninja the next. "Sasuke, loose the weights," grinning, Sasuke pulled the weights off of his arms and legs and turned to face Naruto.

"Let's go then."

"You're going down! _Shadow Clone Jutsu!_" Sasuke grinned, and his image shimmered for a second before he vanished. All six Narutos looked around, blinking.

"Where'd he go?"

"I don't know. You were supposed to be--" the clone that had been talking vanished in a puff of smoke. A dark blur jumped around the group, dispatching each clone with a single kick until he caught the real one in the stomach with a kick.

Naruto twisted in midair, managing to land on his feet. "Gotcha!" Naruto spun around to find Sasuke behind him and gasped as the boy's fist stopped a hair's breath from his face. He let out a strangled yelp and jumped back from Sasuke's fist.

His hands moved to perform another set of seals, but someone grabbed him from behind, pinning his arms to his chest and his back to a body.

"The fight is over Naruto." Kakashi murmured. "If Sasuke had hit you, your head would have cracked open like a nut," the jounin looked over at the woman who was watching him with an amused smile. "Isn't that right, Masami-hime?"

"Don't you 'hime' me, you idiot. I know you're going to try to talk me into going back to the hospital."

"The Third used almost all of his chakra and most of Jiraiya-sama's chakra the last time they tried to do it. Hokage-sama was out for nearly a week, and he couldn't move for another one after that."

"Well, I am not Sarutobi-senpai," she said, placing her hands on her hips. "Besides. I didn't exactly use my own chakra for the jutsu."

"Hey! Would you let me go already!" Kakashi let Naruto go and walked over to Masami.

"What do you mean?"

"I mean, I didn't use my own chakra, or yours or Sasuke's or Naruto's. Which is why we are all able to move, and alive," she shrugged. "Before starting the jutsu, I used something Sarutobi-senpai showed me a long time ago. He told me I shouldn't use it, but I figured, 'what the hell, I might as well.' For a good cause, you know?"

"Are you insane? How could a jutsu create that much energy?"

"It's called the Heaven's Gate Jutsu."

* * *

"She used the _what_?!" Tsunade grabbed Jiraiya's shirt and pulled him toward her.

"The Heaven's Gate Jutsu," Jiraiya replied, shoving her hands off. He backed away again, just to be safe.

"_What _is that?" she asked. He took another step back.

"Sarutobi-sensei didn't tell you about this one?" he teased. Tsunade glared daggers at him, and he held up his hands. "Okay! Okay!"

He sighed. "The Heaven's Gate Jutsu has not been successfully done in over a hundred and fifty years. It opens up a gate directly to the heavens where Kami-sama resides. It allows for that power to be pulled directly from that world and used by the user's body for any purpose that they wish."

"That's--" Tsunade broke off and shook her head. "That's impossible."

"Then you explain what happened," she was at a loss for words. "There's also a reason that no one has been able to use this jutsu for so long," she waited for him to continue. "In order to channel power directly from Heaven, one has to already have heaven in their souls."

"What the hell does that mean?!"

"It means they must have absolutely no darkness, no evil in their heart. Their reasons for using the jutsu must be pure and they must have no doubts about themselves or their ability." He recited.

"That's--"

"Only one other person in history has been able to use this jutsu. It was forbidden because everyone who tried since then has died," Jiraiya turned, grinning. "Well, I'm off," with that, he vanished.

Tsunade looked down at her hands and found that they were trembling.

* * *

Tsunade watched Sasuke and Masami training from her position on the rooftop, eyes alert. _How is it possible? How can such a small _girl_ harness the power of the heavens themselves?_

"No! You're moving too slowly!"

"Well, you've got me wearing these damn weights! How am I supposed to move fast with them on?!"

"I thought you understood what the weights were for!"

"No! I don't!" Tsunade smiled. Uchiha Sasuke was showing emotions.

Her eyes narrowed. No, it was more than that. He was living his emotions. He was getting annoyed and angry with his sensei, and he was showing it.

_He's getting more and more like Naruto each day_. She shook her head, leaning on the railing.

"They've both made progress," a voice said from behind her. She smiled slightly.

"Kakashi," she turned to him. "Did you know that she planned to use the Heaven's Gate jutsu?"

The jounin shook his head, expression solemn. "No. What is it?" He listened carefully as Tsunade explained, his expression darkening with each word.

"So. . ." he looked back down at the field where Sasuke was trying to land a hit on Masami. "She has no evil in her at all?"

Tsunade nodded. "That doesn't seem to surprise you."

"You didn't know her when she was younger," Kakashi said lightly. "Before her parent's death. You could tell with just one look at her. I tried to convince her not to become a shinobi, or to at least be a medic-nin."

"You knew what was waiting for her."

"Yes," Kakashi slid his hands into his pockets, fixing his gaze on the young woman in the middle of the field. "I thought that her innocence would be wiped away the first time she took a life."

* * *

"_A mission?" _

"_B-Rank!" she exclaimed, dancing around him in a circle. "Isn't it great?"_

"_B-Rank means you could be attacked." _

_She stuck her bottom lip out at him. "Kakashi-chan, come on! You said the same thing when I got a C-rank! This is important! Be serious!"_

"_I am," she rolled her eyes, smacking him on the shoulder. "You could get hurt." _

"_So?" he blinked, waiting for her to say something. "I can take care of myself!" _

"_Ma-chan, please," she scowled at his use of a pet name. He knew she didn't like that. _

"_Kakashi-chan--"_

"_Masami-hime, please," she met his eyes as the boy gripped her shoulders. "I don't want to see anything happen to you. Do you know what would happen to me if something did?" _

"_I saw you after Obito-kun and Rin-san," she replied, pushing him off. Her face had darkened, and she was trembling. "I was there with you remember? When you tried to claw out your own eye?" _

"_Masami-hime, you're my best friend."_

"_I know! I'm not going to die! It's only B-Rank! If this is what you're like for that, what happens when I finally get an A-Rank?" _

"_I'll be your Captain, so I won't have to worry about you." He replied, as though he'd thought it through. _

"_Masami-san!" she turned and waved to her teammates. "Come on! Sensei's waiting for us!" _

"_Coming!" she turned around and grinned at her best friend. _

"_I'll come back," she leapt on him in a hug, and he held her as tightly as he could. "Promise," she pressed her lips to his cloth-covered cheek and then took off. _

"

* * *

"Was it?" Tsunade asked. Kakashi looked up at her.

"No,"he shook his head. "Somehow she still retained it," a smile creased the skin around his eye. "We're not sure how."

"Kakashi!" he turned to face Genma. "Do you know where Masami-chan is?"

"No." Kakashi kept walking. Genma frowned at the jounin's back. For some reason, his old teammate's best friend had never really liked him. Smirking, Genma shook his head. As a kid, he hadn't understood. Now he knew.

* * *

_Masami ran through the streets, not caring that she was getting stares from everyone around her. "Onee-chan! Wait up!" _

_She skidded to a stop and glared at her brother. "I told you to go home!" _

"_But I want to go with you!" _

"_I don't have time!" she snapped, and took off again. _Kakashi-chan_ she thought, _hold on._ She flew through the hospital doors, sliding to a stop in front of the front desk. _

"_Hatake Kakashi!" she exclaimed, out of breath. "Which room is Hatake Kakashi in?" _

_They stared at the girl. "What?" _

"_Hatake Kakashi!" she repeated, her voice rising. "Which room is he in?" _

_One of the medic-nins opened a file and frowned. "Are you family?" _

"_Close enough," she replied. "He doesn't have any," their eyes suddenly filled with pity, and she just wanted to whip out her kunai and cut their heads off. "I'm his best friend. Now where is he?" _

"_Calm down, Masami," she turned to look up at Kakashi's sensei. _

"_Where is he?" she squeaked. His eyes were sad, and her heart was racing. _

"_Follow me," the blond man lead her down the hall into a ward she'd never seen before. "Masami-chan, I have to warn you. He's not well." _

"_What do you mean?" she asked as they stopped._

"_Obito was dying, and Kakashi's left eye was ruined from an attack. Obito told Rin to take his eye and give it to Kakashi." the man grimaced and pushed open the door. She spotted her friend in the corner of the room, curled up into a tight ball, apparently sleeping. _

"_Kakashi-chan!" she dashed into the room. _

_It was when she got closer that she saw the scratches and dried blood on the left side of his face. Her gut clenched as her heart twisted in her chest. "Kakashi-chan." She pressed a hand to his face, and his eyes fluttered open. "What'd you do?" _

"_I want it out," he murmured, still half-asleep. "Too.. . .painful." _

"_Kakashi," she grabbed the sides of his face, forcing him to look at her . "Kakashi-kun, please," pain-filled brown and red eyes raised to look straight into hers. She could feel him trembling. _

"_I can't," he squeezed his eyes shut and shrank back into the wall. The icy hand on her heart squeezed and twisted until she was out of breath and silent sobs wracked her small body. _

"

* * *

"Masami," she looked up at Genma. "You're not eating," she looked back down at her ramen, which was getting cold.

"Sorry," she muttered. "Lunch wasn't exactly a good idea today."

"You were thinking about Kakashi, weren't you?" she looked up at him sharply.

"What?"

"Admit it. You were," he pointed his chopsticks at her. She narrowed her eyes at him suspiciously.

"How'd you know that?"

Genma smirked, leaning back in his seat. "I can tell. You always get this look on your face when you think or talk about him."

"I do not get--" she broke off and just glared at him. "What _kind _of look?" she asked skeptically. His smirk widened, eyes dancing with mirth.

"You get this far-off look in your eyes, and you seem like you'd rather be with him."

"I--" she stopped and scowled at his look. "I like being here just fine."

"Yeah, but you'd rather be seeing whatever is under that mask, right?"

She raised an eyebrow at this. "I've never seen his whole face."

"Seriously? You're his oldest friend."

"Seriously," she poked her ramen with her chopsticks. "He's never shown me it. I first met him in preschool. He'd already decided that he wanted to be a ninja, so he always wore it."

"So you've never seen his face?"

"Nope," she leaned forward on the table, eyeing Genma seriously. "Something's been going on. It's been too quiet lately. Reports of Orochimaru's movements have stopped coming in."

Genma regarded her warily. "Masami-san, do not worry about it."

"Don't worry about it?! Genma-san, he--"

"Not here," Genma said, and dragged her out of the restaurant. He pulled her down the street, ignoring her protests, knowing full well that if she really wanted to get away, she'd be gone. He stopped when they reached an empty training field.

"Is _here_ good then?" she asked, thoroughly annoyed.

"Masami, forget about Orochimaru for now. You've got your own student now. Tsunade-sama is not going to give you _or_ Sasuke any missions that could involve Orochimaru or the Akatsuki."

"I'm not saying that," she said. "What I'm saying is that he's been far to quiet lately. Attacking and then retreating is not his style. Why is he waiting?"

"Masami-san, if I had the answers, I would not be sitting around here waiting for _him_ to make the next move," he turned to leave.

"Genma-san, I know!" she was suddenly in front of him again. He barely blinked. "I'm just--" She sighed. "I'm worried he's going to go after Sasuke-kun again. This time he may not leave him alive."

"You've really become attached to him, haven't you?"

"Shut up," she muttered, glaring at his smirk. Suddenly he sighed, and ruffled her hair. She scowled at him. "Don't do that."

"Masami, I swear I'll let you know if I hear anything about Orochimaru or Itachi," with that, he left her alone on the training field, fuming.

* * *

"_Onee-chan! They're dead! They're both dead!" she had to keep the lump in her throat down. She had to be strong for him. _"_Nii-chan, everything will be okay. I swear."_

"_No! It won't they're gone! They're not coming back!" she just held her little brother as he sobbed, eventually tiring himself out and falling asleep. She was still holding him when soft, familiar footsteps reached her ears. _

_She closed her eyes, willing him to leave. She wanted to be strong. She had to be strong, for Iruka. _

"_Masami-hime," she squeezed her eyes shut, then opened them, realizing that he wasn't going to go away. Biting her lip, she gently lay her little brother out in his bed, and pulled the blankets up over his shoulders. Then she turned and walked past her best friend out into the hall. She slid the door to Iruka's room closed and slipped down the stairs to the kitchen. She put some water on the stove to boil. She felt, rather than heard him enter the room and felt her resolve begin to crumble. _

_It burst into a million pieces when he put his hands on her shoulders. She spun around, letting the older boy take her in his arms. "You don't have to be strong around me," he murmured into her hair. "You **never** have to pretend around me." _

"_I--" she started sobbing into his shirt. "I can't take care of him! I'm only fourteen! How can I take care of him?!" _

"_You'll be fine Masami-hime." he said, his arms tightening around her. "Everything will be fine." _

"_How can you be so sure?" she asked, tensing. "How can you know that?" _

"_Because I know you." he replied softly, pressing a hand to her head. She buried her face in his chest. "You are amazing. You can do anything you want, including raise your brother."_

"_Kakashi-chan, I don't know what I'd do without you." _

"_I'm not going anywhere," he said, holding her even tighter. Her arms slid around his waist, hugging him as tightly as she could. "I promise." _

"

* * *

Tsunade stared at the papers on her desk, though she wasn't really seeing them. One thing had been on her mind for the past few weeks. _How can Masami use the Heaven's Gate Jutsu? And why did Sarutobi-sensei teach it only to her? Did he think it was too much for us to handle? Or was he just afraid that we might die trying?_

She wished she could just find him and ask. There were so many things she wanted to ask the old man.

_Damn him for dying, and damn Orochimaru for killing him._ She stood, finally making up her mind. _I think it's time to talk with Masami_.

* * *

"I'll get it!" Iruka called, trudging down the hall. "Don't worry about it!" he scowled. "Not like you guys ever do anyway. Unless it _Kakashi_." he muttered under his breath.

He opened the door and froze. "Tsunade-sama!" he blinked a few times. "What -- I. . ."

"Is Masami in?" she asked, placing a hand on her hip. Iruka nodded, still appearing dumbfounded.

"Yes. I, I'll go get her. Please, come in," with that, he took off down the hall and up the stairs.

"Onee-chan!"

There was a muffled thump and seconds later, a sleepy and unhappy Masami stormed out of her room.

"I go to bed early _one night_ and--"

"Tsunade-sama is here to see you," she paused, blinking a couple of times before walking painfully slowly down the stairs.

"Sorry to come by so suddenly," Tsunade said. "But I have some questions I need to ask."

"About the Heaven's Gate Jutsu, right?" she asked. Tsunade followed her into the sitting room.

"Correct. I have a few questions, and since the Third is--" she broke off.

"You're hoping he told me something?" Tsunade nodded, eyes narrowing at the way the woman kept finishing her thoughts for her. It was weird.

"How can you use the jutsu?" she asked.

Masami shrugged. She knew that she didn't have to give the whole explanation now. "I've only used it twice," she said. "Once was to see if I _could_. Then Sarutobi-senpai told me never to use it again. Ever. The second time you saw."

"Yes, but why did you use it?"

"The last time we performed the removal jutsu, both the Third and Jiraiya-sama were almost completely drained of chakra. We could not risk using either you or Jiraiya-sama for it because of the chance of death. Kakashi-chan and I simply do not have the kind of power necessary to do it. We needed some way to get that power. Not even Naruto could have supplied the necessary amount. I didn't see another choice."

Tsunade took a moment to sort through what the younger woman had just told her, then moved on. "Why you? Why didn't he teach it to us?"

Masami's face darkened. "That he didn't tell me. He told me he didn't teach Orochimaru because he knew that he would try it, and he did not want him to die," she sighed. "I asked him why he didn't teach you or Jiraiya-sama, but he would not tell me." Tsunade didn't reply. "I do not know everything about the jutsu, though I'm sure I know more than most. I know what it does and how it works, but I cannot understand why so many people die."

Tsunade frowned. "Jiraiya told me that if the user has even one bit of darkness in their hearts, trying to harness the very power of Heaven itself will burn them to ash," she realized the look of sudden terror on the younger woman's face and groaned.

"You're not going to die," she said. "You've already done the jutsu, which proves something that I suppose only your brother and Kakashi knew already," she stood up and gave Masami a small, respectful bow, before turning and leaving.

A small smile on her face, Masami headed back up to bed.

* * *

He was almost ready.

Almost.

She would pay for taking the boy from him. He'd known exactly how to pull at the boy, to try to play on the darkness in his heart, the thirst for revenge, his need to kill his own brother.

And she had taken him away.

Oh, she would pay. He'd make sure she'd pay _dearly_ for taking the boy.

He couldn't send anyone to kill her. He knew that none of him men had anywhere near the skill that it would require, not even Kabuto. If he was going to kill her, he'd have to do it himself.

He suddenly smiled, a grin full of evil that would have made even his most staunch supporter cringe away in fear.

He couldn't send anyone to kill _her_, but he knew a sure way to drive a painful blade straight through her heart. There was only one sure way.


	5. Chapter 5

Masami was fidgeting. Team Seven had been sent out on a C-class mission the day before, and she was already getting restless.

She wasn't sure of Orochimaru's movements. Their intelligence on his recent maneuvers was poor, to the point of nonexistent.

She was in the middle of a meeting with Tsunade and the other ANBU captains when a knock sounded on the door.

"Come!" Tsunade called. She looked thoroughly annoyed at being interrupted, and shot the messenger a rather harsh glare. He was a young gennin, an old student of Iruka's, but Masami couldn't remember his name. "What is it?"

"Uh, there is a chunnin from the village hidden in the sand to see you," he said, visibly trembling. "He said something about the Hidden Sound village," Masami gripped the arms of her chair.

"Show him in, immediately!"

A young man stumbled in, bowing to Tsunade.

"Lady Hokage. I have a message from the Kazakage. He sent me to inform you that we spotted four ninja from the Hidden Sound in our village three days ago. They asked around, and it got back to Lord Kazakage that they were looking for a team from Konoha."

"What Team?" Tsunade asked, seeing Masami lean forward and open her mouth to speak. She didn't want Masami embarrassing herself.

"The team with Copy-ninja Kakashi. Ordinarily jounin would have been dispatched immediately, but we have none to spare at the moment."

"Understood," Tsunade looked down the table, and met Masami's eyes. "Thank you. Captain Masami. Gather a three man team and find Team Seven. Escort them back here. Do _nothing_ else. Do not engage the sound ninja unless absolutely necessary."

Masami nodded, getting to her feet. "Yes Tsunade-sama." She turned and sprinted from the room.

* * *

"Kakashi-sensei!" Sakura screamed as the jounin stumbled backward, six kunai buried in his body. Sasuke jumped in front of his sensei and his friend.

"Naruto!" the boy was beside him in a second, watching as Sasuke drew the katana Masami had given him from over his shoulder.

"I've got them!"

"Naruto! No!"

* * *

"What a drag."

"Shikamaru, shut it," Masami snapped. "You could have declined."

"I meant the fact that we haven't found them yet."

"I would have found them already if Genma-san wasn't OUT OF SHAPE!" she tossed the last part over her shoulder at Genma, who was lagging behind. "They were only sent out yesterday! We should have reached them by--"

"SASUKE-KUN!!" Masami stopped short on a tree branch and almost lost her balance. Instead, she used her momentum to swing around the tree and sprint off in the direction of the very familiar, very feminine scream. "SASKUE-KUN!!"

_Hold on!_

She spotted the pink hair first, then froze at the sight of the bloody figure on the ground. Her stomach clenched as she flashed forward to his side. Sakura screamed at the top of her lungs for a few seconds before realizing who the new person was. Genma and Shikamaru appeared behind her. She pressed a hand to Kakashi's face.

"Kakashi-chan," his eyes fluttered open, and he blinked up at her before they closed again.

Quivering with anger, Masami looked over to her battered student, who held his katana in bloody hands, standing between an unconscious Naruto and one of the Sound ninja.

Shikamaru blinked, and Masami seemed to vanish, appearing behind the ninja advancing on Sasuke in seconds, a katana in each hand. In a move almost too swift to see with his eyes, she pressed a sword to both sides of the man's neck and pulled them in opposite directions.

He fell immediately to the ground, headless, and Masami looked up at Sasuke, her blue eyes hard, cold, and alive with fire.

"Which one," her voice was cold, tense, almost livid. "Which one of them hurt him?" Sasuke didn't have to ask which 'him' she meant, but one of the sound ninja decided to.

"Which 'him' you talking 'bout?" he asked, laughing. "Both of them were pieces of work, but I dispatched the tall one."

"Hold that thought," in a flash of black cloth, Masami had thrown both katana into the two other ninja.

"Why are we even here?" Shikamaru asked, watching in amazement as Masami walked deliberately over to each of the fallen men and retrieved her swords. The last man standing still, staring at her in terrified shock. "She doesn't need us at all."

"Tsunade-sama ordered a three-man team," Genma said, starting to wrap Kakashi's injuries. "Because she figured they would need medical attention. Masami-san would have forgotten it. Check on your friends," Shikamaru nodded and ran over to make sure that Naruto and Sasuke weren't injured too badly.

"Who are you?" the enemy ninja asked.

She had to give him some credit, he didn't seem to be afraid of her, even after she'd taken out her companions. "Umino Masami," she replied. She tightened her grip on her katana as he laughed.

"You say that like it's supposed to mean something to me."

"It ought to." She said icily. "But the fact that you don't know my name means that Orochimaru doesn't trust you enough to admit his failures to."

"You'll pay for that!" he shouted. "I will finish you off and then your silver-haired _kare_!"

He barely had time to register that she had moved before her katana buried itself in his stomach.

"Wrong thing to say," her voice had gone from angry, to completely empty sounding. "No one touches my student, my friend, or anyone from my village in my presence and lives to tell about it!" he stumbled backward as she stepped toward him, her hands flying in a seal. The air whipped around her, tugging her hair free of its tie.

"Lightning Blade!" with a cry she ran forward, her katana blazing brightly with her chakra. She spun, slashing her blade in a diagonal sweep across the man's body. In the light from her sword, the others could only see two shadows separate and fall. The light went out as Masami slid both her katana back into the sheaths on her back. She turned around and ran back to Kakashi. Dropping to the ground next to him, and ignoring Genma's protests, she pressed a hand to the side of his face. When he didn't respond, she fought the lump in her throat and put a hand over one of his bandaged wounds.

"Masami-san, what--"

"Shut up," she said, her voice tight. "Sakura! Help Shikamaru with Sasuke!" The woman's hands began to glow, and she closed her eyes in concentration, trying to heal the worst of Kakashi's wounds.

_I won't let you die on me! _she fought the growing lump in her throat. _You promised you weren't going to leave me!_ she knew she was being childish, it was a promise that could never truely be kept.

"Masami, give up. He's gone."

"No!" she shoved Genma's hand off her shoulder and her hands flew in the only thing she could think of. "He can't!"

"_I'm not going anywhere. I promise."_

"Bastard," she muttered, holding the final seal. "_Heaven's Gate Jutsu!_"

The force of the wind threw Genma away from the brilliant light. He couldn't see anything.

At all.

As he watched the light, a strangle clam settled over him. He blinked as his vision began to clear. The light around Masami was dimmer, though her hands were still painfully bright. That wasn't what shocked him.

A pair of wings made of pure white light stretched out of her back, shifting as she moved from injury to injury on Kakashi's body.

_He wasn't kidding_, Genma thought _when he called her an angel_.

* * *

_Genma looked up at the gates and shook his head. He'd known it. It was always the same. They'd come back from a mission, and there _he_'d be, waiting to see that she was alive and coming back under her own power. There had only been once time when Kakashi hadn't been waiting by the gate, and the only reason was that he'd been on an ANBU mission. _

_This time he had company. Her little brother Iruka was standing next to the taller boy, trying his best to ignore him. "Onee-chan!" he ran toward her, and Genma watched as his teammate grinned, scooping him up and swinging him around in circles. _

"_Nii-chan," she ruffled his hair. "How about we go for some ramen?" _

"_Ramen!" he scrambled away from her, and took off down the street. She looked over at Kakashi, who just held up a hand in greeting and gave her a nod. "Onee-chan! Come on!" Iruka realized that his sister wasn't following, so he ran back and grabbed her hand. "Ramen! Come on!" she raised a hand to Kakashi and Genma as she let her little brother pull her along the street. _

_Genma glanced at Kakashi, who watched until they were out of sight. _

"_Why did you wait? You knew she was going to go with her brother." _

_Kakashi glanced over at him, then dismissed the question with a shrug. "I just wanted to make sure she was alive," he started to turn away, but Genma's curiosity got the better of him. _

"_Why?" _

_Kakashi turned to look at him. "Because she's my friend." _

"_I don't think that's all there is to it." _

_For a moment Genma didn't think that Kakashi was going to answer him. Then he sighed. "She was there for me when I needed her. She's the light in the dark. You may not see it, but she's an angel." _

* * *

"He was right," Genma said, walking up behind the young ANBU captain as she stood next to Kakashi's hospital bed.

"What?" she glanced over her shoulder at him. "What are you talking about?"

Genma smirked. "He told me something once, and he was right."

"What was that?" she turned back to Kakashi.

Genma leaned his head over her shoulder. "That you're an angel," she stiffened as he backed away, listening as his footsteps moved toward the door.

"Genma-san," he glanced back at her. Her voice was tight, pained. "Thank you,"

He just shook his head and left.

* * *

"_Kakashi-kun!" He jerked awake as the door to his apartment flew open. "Kakashi-kun!" Masami came flying across the room, and pounced on him. _

"_Ow! Get off," he pushed her away from him, holding his excited friend at an arms length. "What is it?" _

"_I got an A-rank!" she exclaimed, and ducked under his arms. She hugged him around the waist and pressed her cheek against his bare chest. "An A-Rank! Can you believe it?" _

_His mind raced. An A-rank? That meant--_

"_You got promoted to jounin?" he asked. She nodded and hugged him tighter. _

"_Isn't it great?" _

"_I--" he broke off, staring down at the mass of brown hair tickling his chest. "I'm happy for you," she pulled back and frowned at him. _

"_But you're not happy," she said. He almost groaned. She was pouting again. He hated it when she pouted. _

"_You know I worry about you," he said. Her eyes widened, and he could sense an argument brewing. "I _know_ that you're an amazing ninja," he said. "But no matter how strong we are, there's always going to be someone better than us out there," his fingers unconsciously traced the small scar on her neck. _

_She pulled back, "Somehow you managed to make me feel guilty about being happy." Kakashi leaned forward, pressing his forehead to hers. _

"_You should be happy. You've been studying with the Hokage for three years. It's about time you got promoted," he smiled as a triumphant grin spread over her face. _

"_Oh yeah!" she started bouncing. She was sixteen, yet she was acting about as mature as a six-year old. "Come on! You're going to buy me a celebratory breakfast!" _

_With a sigh, Kakashi pulled a hand through his hair. "Fine, just turn around." _

"_Huh?" He gave her a pointed look, and her face immediately colored. "Are you serious?" _

"_Yeah," she spun around, clapping her hands over her eyes. _

"_Just . . . Get some clothes on," she muttered. He smirked, grabbing his pants. _

"_How does ramen sound?" he asked, searching for a shirt. _

"_Whatever," he shook his head. He always marveled at the fact that he was the only who seemed to be able to embarrass her this much. _

* * *

"Sasuke, come on. Land a hit on me and we'll finish for today!"

Sasuke leapt back, landing smoothly on his feet. He ground his teeth. Since he had gotten strong enough for the medic-nins to clear him for training again, Masami had been training him relentlessly.

But then again, he could _feel_ himself getting faster and stronger too.

But training for this long with her was practically suicide. All she'd done was shift to block his attacks. She hadn't even had to attack him back. She just kept pitching him across the field like a rag doll.

"Easier said than done," he muttered. Why couldn't he just take the weights off?

"Leave the weights alone," she said. "Gai's on to something with them. They will make you faster and stronger," she smirked. "Just don't tell him that I said that."

"How will this help me beat Itachi?" he asked suddenly. She raised an eyebrow at him.

"What?"

"How will this help me? I need to learn jutsu!"

"No you don't. Itachi's weakest area is taijutsu. If he can't see you, he can't hit you with a jutsu. Besides, he has the sharingan. Any jutsu you try to perform he will just replicate."

Her eyes suddenly lightened, "If you can land a hit on me, we can got home and eat. We're not leaving until you do," she smiled. "Be creative."

Sasuke suddenly leapt into the air, his fingers flying. "_Shadow Clone Jutsu_!" he shouted, and four Sasukes landed all around his sensei, kunai in hand. They ran for her.

"Well, I said be creative," she muttered, blocking a kick from either side. She ducked a kick from the third and struck out with her foot, causing a clone to vanish in a puff of smoke. The two feet pulled themselves out of her grip, and she had to lean back almost parallel to the ground to avoid the third one's foot. She grabbed the punch aimed at her from the right, another from the left, and shifted her weight, spinning the two Sasukes to opposite ends of the field. They both exploded in a cloud of smoke. She used the momentum to spin, landed a kick to the last Sasuke.

She faltered when he burst into a cloud of smoke. She spun, but it was too late. Sasuke had landed a kick to her stomach. Caught off guard, she dropped, winded.

"Where'd you get that one?" she asked. He smirked.

"Naruto. He may be an idiot, but he comes up with some pretty interesting techniques." Sasuke stood, brushing the dust off his shorts. "Can we go eat now?"

She smirked, ruffling his hair. "Yeah, sure. I--"

"SASUKE!!!" The both spun around to face the new voice. Sasuke groaned. "I, ROCK LEE, CHALLENGE YOU TO A--"

"Stuff it kid," Masami said, cutting him off. "He just got done training, and he hasn't eaten all day. He's in no condition to fight you right now."

"ARE YOU DENYING MY STUDENT HIS CHALLENGE, FAIR MAIDEN?!"

"Oh, for the love of Kami," she muttered, turning away from Rock Lee. Her hand was gripping Sasuke's shoulder firmly. "No Gai. I'm just saying that his challenge will have to wait."

"WELL, IF YOU WILL NOT ACCEPT MY STUDENT'S CHALLENGE, IT MUST BE CONCLUDED THAT YOUR STUDENT IS THE WEAKER ONE! MY LEE NEVER BACKS DOWN!"

"Sasuke is not backing down!" Masami said heatedly. "He is not fit to compete with Lee in his present condition. If your student wants to challenge mine, he'll have to do it some other time!"

"WELL, THEN IF MY STUDENT CANNOT CHALLENGE YOUR STUDENT TODAY, PERHAPS YOU COULD HEAL MY WOUNDED PRIDE WITH DINNER!"

"I--"

"OH, MASAMI-HIME, IT WOULD MAKE ME--"

"Get lost Gai," Kakashi strode onto the field, and put a hand on Masami's arm. "Ready to go?"

She blinked at him. "What?"

"It's Tuesday," her eyes widened.

"Really?" she frowned. "I'd completely forgot."

"AH! KAKASHI!!! I CHALLENGE YOU, MY RIVAL, TO A BATTLE!"

"Gai!"

"It's okay Masami-chan," Kakashi said, and turned to Gai. "What is it today Gai?"

"A RACE! TO THE OTHER SIDE OF THE FIELD AND BACK! THE WINNER GETS THE FAIR MASAMI'S COMPANY AS A PRIZE TONIGHT!"

"Kakashi, come on. You don't have to--" he glanced back at her and she broke off. "Oh great," she sighed, flopping down on the ground. "This could take a while."

"READY! SET! GO!"

* * *

"Kakashi, go away."

"I don't think I can do that," the jounin replied. "Remember the bet Gai and I made?" he grinned, throwing an arm around her shoulders. "Well, I won, so I have the pleasure of your company for the evening."

"What the hell made you think you had the right to bet my company?"

"Gai made the bet, not me."

She glared at him. "You didn't have to take it."

"What if I was so insanely jealous of the thought of him spending the evening with you that I agreed, just to spare myself the pain?"

"I'd tell you to stop being a jerk and tell the truth."

"And if that was the truth?" she stopped dead in her tracks and turned slowly to look at him. She held his gaze for only a moment before she started walking again.

"Well, it's not," she replied lightly, shoving her hands in her pockets. "So shut up."

"Where's Sasuke?" Kakashi decided a change of subject would be a good idea.

"Don't know. He said he'd be home later."

"You trust him that much?" he asked. She glared up at him.

"Sasuke has changed Kakashi-chan," she said defensively. "He's different now."

"I was just asking how much you trust him. I didn't mean to question him."

The reply was instantaneous. "I trust him with my life, Kakashi-chan," he sighed, squeezing her shoulder gently.

"So do I," he replied. "So there's no need to get all defensive on me."

"I wasn't being defensive," he smirked, knowing she couldn't see it.

"Yes you were."

"Was not!"

"Were too," he said in a sing-songy voice.

She threw him a glare over her shoulder. "You are so immature," she said, and stuck out her tongue at him.

He blinked in surprise. "_I'm _the immature one here?" she pushed open the front door to her house, shutting it behind him. "That's a new one," she glared at him before disappearing into the kitchen.

"Is anyone else here?" he asked, leaning against the doorway, watching her as she put some water on for tea.

"No. Iruka-kun has a teacher's meeting at the school until late, and Sasuke-kun is. . . doing something."

"You're being a little cryptic about what he's doing. Why don't you want me to know?" Masami sighed heavily, rubbing the back of her neck nervously as she turned to face him.

"I don't know," she said. Kakashi paused, raising an eyebrow at her. "I didn't ask, okay?"

"Masami-chan--"

"Kakashi-chan, he told me he'd be back by eleven. Why can't you trust him? He's not going to run off! He feels guilty about what happened," she said softly. "He's reminding me more and more of me."

"Masami, you knew going into this that the two of you had a lot in common."

"At least his sensei wasn't responsible for killing his parents," she muttered darkly. "That's a big difference."

"Masami, I thought you'd resolved that."

"Just because I'm not seeking him out to kill him doesn't mean I don't still feel it," she snapped, turning away from him again.

She tensed again when he put a hand on her shoulder. "Masami, I'm sorry I got you into this. I know it's dragged a lot of things to the surface for you," she froze at the uncharacteristic apology. She let out a shaky breath and turned around.

"I'll be--" she froze, staring up at him. He was suddenly so _close_ to her. His presence was almost overwhelming. "--Fine," she finished. Unconsciously, she licked her lips, trying to decide what to do next.

"Right. . ." Kakashi drew out the word, lifting a hand to brush the hair out of her face. She shivered as it made contact with her cheek. His eyes dropped from hers and settled somewhere in the vicinity of her lips.

"Kakashi," she breathed. His fingers danced down her jaw line and lightly gripped her chin, holding her face where it was, tilted up to look at him. "Kakashi-chan, what. . ." she trailed off as his other hand moved up to his face. Her arm shot up and grabbed his wrist as his fingers closed over the edge of his mask. His one visible eye widened a little as she pulled his hand away from his face and let it go, pushing his forehead protector off of his eye. Her fingers danced down his face, the tips sliding under the edge of his mask. He lifted his eyes again to meet hers, and gave a slight nod of his head. She raised her other hand and pulled his mask down off his face.

She blinked, staring at the face of her lifelong best friend. He was beautiful, just like she'd always thought he'd be. She trailed her fingers over the smooth skin of his face, her eyes burning the image into her mind.

"Kakashi. . ." she whispered. He hadn't moved the hand from her chin yet, and suddenly tightened his grip a little, leaning down slowly. Her mind raced. She knew what was going to happen, but she didn't know if she wanted it to.

She and Kakashi had been best friends forever. They had been inseparable as long as anyone could remember.

She could have moved if she'd really wanted to. If she'd wanted to, she could have kicked his ass across the room and out of her family's house.

If she'd wanted to.

But she didn't.

So she just let him press his lips to hers, gently at first. He released her chin as she leaned into the kiss, sliding his hand around the back of her neck, pulling her closer to him. Her stomach was doing somersaults in her belly, and her heart felt like it was going to explode.

She slid her arms around Kakashi's neck, her eyes sliding shut. His other hand found its way to the small of her back, pulling her closer. Gently, he moved his lips against hers. The sound of the front door opening reached them, and they jumped back away from each other. Masami didn't realize that she had been standing only a few inches away from the counter and ended up ramming her hip into it. She grimaced and glanced up at Kakashi to see his mask and forehead protector in place again.

"Onee-chan!" she let out a breath she didn't know she'd been holding as Iruka stuck his head in the kitchen. "Hey."

"Hey," she said, rubbing the back of her neck nervously. "Did you see Sasuke on your way home?"

"No. Did you leave him alone?"

"God, why don't you people trust him?!" she snapped. Iruka raised an eyebrow.

"I'll see you later then. I already had dinner, so don't worry about it," he left the room, and Masami turned to take the water off. She poured two cups of tea and turned to find Kakashi right in front of her again. He took the cups from her trembling hands and set them on the table. She took a step toward the table, rubbing her hip. She could already feel it bruising.

They were quiet, which was a rare thing for the two friends. Neither said a word until the tea was long cold, the sky outside the window dark and filled with stars.

Masami frowned. "Sasuke's late," she muttered, getting to her feet.

"What happened to trusting him?" Kakashi asked.

"It's got nothing to do with me trusting him not to run off again," she said, "and everything to do with me being worried about Orochimaru," Kakashi raised an eyebrow in a silent question. "There's been no activity since he tried attacking your team on your last mission," she explained. "It's making me nervous."

Kakashi rose and gripped her shoulders. "He'll be fine," he assured her. "Orochimaru isn't going to try another attack inside Konoha for a while. I think Sasuke's safe," she gave him a small smile.

"Just the same, I'm going to wait up for him," she settled down to wait, knowing Kakashi wasn't going to leave.


	6. Chapter 6

**A/n**: Bloody freaking hell! I didn't realize how long it had been since I updated until I actually came back and looked at my profile. My deepest, sincerest apologies to those of you who didn't give up on me, clinging to that one last bit of hope! Anyway, I'm pretty much done writing this, I've only got one more lose end to tie up, which should wrap itself up pretty fast. (as soon as I figure out what the hell I'm doing . )

Uhm, again I'm reeeeeeeeeeaaaaaally sorry for my extremely long absence. I have no excuse other than the fact that audio/visual crew has taken over my life!!! Seriously, there was about two weeks straight where I was at school more than I was at home. One day I was at school for over 17 hours.

Roar. And now I have far too much free time, my boyfriend went to Cincinnati for Christmas break, and I suddenly have more free time than I know what to do with.

But I'm ranting. Here's your next update, along with two bonus chapters (cause I feel really really really bad!).

_

* * *

_

_She watched her ANBU Captain carefully, his red eyes fixed on their targets. Those eyes were hard, cold, expressionless eyes. _

"_Masami. Move in__," he murmured, tapping the woman's shoulder. She slipped silently through the woods, heart pounding so loud she'd be surprised if her Captain couldn't hear it. _

_She reached over her shoulder and gripped her katana, sliding it soundlessly out of its sheath and holding it in front of her as she closed in on the targets' camp. She knew her Captain was already on the other side, moving into position. He never failed. _

"_I'm in position," she murmured into her mic. _

"_Copy," came the flat reply. "Move on three." _

"_Copy." _

"_One," she tightened her grip on the sword, shifting her weight to her back foot. "Two," she inhaled and calmed her nerves. This was an assassination mission, her first of the kind. "Three," on the other side of the clearing, she saw him leap out and take out their first target in seconds. She moved to take our hers, but in a flash she found herself on the ground. Her Captain had moved on to their other targets, but h__ers was too fast. _

_She made to grab a kunai, but the target stepped on her wrist, and peered down at her. _

"_Konoha ANBU," he smirked. "You're not so tough," he shifted all his weight to the leg standing on her arm and she heard the bones crunch before the pain hit her. He kicked off her mask, and his smirk spread into a grin. "But you are pretty enough." _

_She raised one hand and performed the seals for the jutsu she wanted with one hand. Just before she could finish the last seal, his hand moved so fast it was a blur. "Can't have you doing that, now can we?" she twisted, instinctively raising a knee into his groin. He yelped and jumped back away from her. Her broken wrist throbbed as she scrambled to her feet, her uninjured left hand clutching her katana. _

"_Bitch," the target spat, lunging toward her. _

_A blur blocked her vision, and she blinked, realizing who it was. When her Captain turned around, she caught a glimpse of her target, on the ground, eyes wide and unseeing in death. _

"_Let me see your arm," he said, gently taking hold of the arm she'd been cradling against her stomach. She winced as he gently, but firmly checked it for bruises, but refused to let herself cry. To be hurt was a trivial thing, routine on missions. Pain shouldn't bring tears to her eyes. _

"_Your wrist is broken, though not too badly," red eyes lifted to look at her. "But I'm going to have to set it," Masami bit her lip. It was hard, sometimes, to remember that he was nearly five years younger than her. He looked and acted so much older. "It's going to be painful," she nodded again, setting her jaw. The boy drew her against him, taking her wrist in both hands. "Just hold on, okay?" she nodded, gripping his shirt as he set the bones in her wrist back into place. She cried out as the pain shot up her arm. It felt like it was on fire. The fire was the last thing she felt before she passed out.

* * *

_

"Masami!" she gasped and sat bolt upright. Somehow, Kakashi had managed to move her to her bedroom and had tucked her under the covers. Two figures stood in the doorway, Kakashi and Sasuke. She stared at the boy, and swallowed. For a split second, she had thought Itachi had been standing in her doorway.

"Sasuke, she'll be fine. Get to bed."

"Did you just get home?" Masami asked, glancing at her clock. It was after midnight.

"Yeah," Masami sighed.

"We'll talk in the morning," she said.

"Sasuke, go to bed," Kakashi repeated, his gaze trained on Masami's face. She glanced at the boy and nodded.

Shrugging, he left the two alone.

Kakashi stepped into her room as she swung herself out of bed and scrubbed her face.

"Itachi?" he asked. She ignored him, pulling out her pajamas. He caught her wrists, holding her in place. "I saw the look you gave Sasuke. He didn't miss it either."

"I'm fine," she snapped, pulling away from him. "It was just a dream," She tossed her pajamas on her bed.

"Masami-chan," he gripped her shoulders from behind her. This way she couldn't swing around and slug him. "You never have to pretend around me. You know that," leaving her with that thought, Kakashi headed home.

* * *

When he got there, he found the door unlocked, and smirked. He stepped inside and closed it behind him. "Well, that's funny. I could have sworn I locked it. . ." he slid off his forehead protector and dropped it on the table next to his bed. "One would think you'd remember to lock it behind you Masami-chan," he slung his vest over a chair and turned to face the young woman in the shadows.

"I'm sorry," she said. "I overreacted."

"Forget it."

"It wasn't just a dream," she admitted quietly. "More like a memory." She glanced up at him. "Remember my first mission under Itachi-san?"

"The one where you came back with a broken arm?" she nodded slowly, not moving from her spot against the wall.

"Yeah. That one," she let out a breath. "It was an assassination mission. I had one job. To take out one target."

"You're not really supposed to be telling me that, you know."

"Shut up," she said, a little more harshly than she meant to. "I didn't even manage to take him out. He was faster than I expected, and he broke my arm. When he knocked off my mask and figured out that I was a woman. . ." she winced and trailed off. "I managed to get him away from me after he broke my arm, but I had to use my left arm to fight," she lifted her eyes to look at him through her hair. "Itachi-san killed him," she said. "and set my wrist. I passed out from the pain, and woke up as he carried me back into the village."

Kakashi's expression hadn't changed. "I remember that. I was visiting one of my team members in the hospital when he brought you in," his eyes narrowed slightly. "He refused to leave your side until you woke up again. Too protective."

"As I remember it, you actually attacked one of the nurses when I was brought in one time."

"That was different," Kakashi said, stepping toward her. "You realize that you were the only person who kept me sane? You were the only who stayed with me," he reached her, and lifted her chin so a shaft of moonlight hit her face. "He just had a crush on you."

"What's your point?" she asked, tilting her head to the side. Kakashi's eyes narrowed again.

"I think what happened earlier might have cleared some things up for you," he said, straightening up again. He smiled at the blush that came over her cheeks.

"I. . ." she trailed off. "That was. . ." she swallowed as he stepped toward her again, instinctively backing into the wall. "Kakashi. . ."

"Masa-chan," he murmured, brushing her hair away from her face again. "I don't know how to say it."

"Say what?" she asked, her fingers trailing up his face to the edge of his mask.

"I just told you, I don't know how to say it," he sounded like he were explaining something to a particularly dense student.

"Then just say whatever pops into your head," she said, her voice thick.

His hands moved forward, gripping her hips firmly and keeping her pressed against the wall. "So it doesn't have to be romantic or anything?"

"You should be able to think of something, with all those books you read," she teased, smile widening as she pulled his mask down his face.

"You really want to know what they do in those books?" he asked, leaning down so close to her that she could feel the heat of his breath on her cheeks. She felt a blush creep up her neck as his hands shifted on her hips. Her eyes slid partially closed as he shifted, his lips brushing her ear. "I could show you if you want," her eyes slid shut as his breath ghosted over her ear.

"Ka-kun," she murmured. Kakashi's lips curved into a grin. He remembered that name. She used to call him that, as a child, when she couldn't pronounce 'Kakashi-kun' properly. "Just say it."

"Masami-chan, I--"

They jumped apart as someone pounded on the door, violently enough to make it rattle. Kakashi yanked his mask up and stalked over to the door, yanking it open. He glared at the young gennin in the doorway.

"What do you want?" he asked. The gennin was bent over, hands on his knees and gasping for breath.

"Sir," he panted. "Hokage-sama sent me to find you. She didn't say why, but she wants to see you and Masami-sama in her office right away," he straightened. "Do you know where I could find Masami-sama's house? Tsunade-sama did not tell me, and--"

"No need," Masami muttered, shoving Kakashi's vest and forehead protector into his arms. "Let's go."

* * *

They arrived in Tsunade's office in what must have been record time, and Kakashi followed the younger jounin into the room.

"What's happened?" Masami demanded the second Kakashi had closed the door behind them.

"The Akatsuki," she glanced behind her at Jiraiya, who was leaning against the wall. "They're making a move again."

Masami frowned. "Who are they sending this time?"

"Itachi and Kisame," Jiraiya replied. "They were spotted heading toward Konoha three days ago," he glanced over at Kakashi. "They're after your student again."

"No. They're after the thing inside him." Kakashi's voice had gone dangerously soft, his eyes narrowing.

"We should get him out of the village," Masami said, looking at Tsunade.

"Exactly what we were thinking," Jiraiya put a hand on her shoulder. "Which is why we're sending you on a mission."

"What?" she turned to look at the white-haired sannin. "Me?"

"We're giving Team Seven a B-rank mission," Masami's head whipped around to Tsunade. "It should be sufficient enough, sending the two of you with all three students, as not to alert extra attention," she shifted her gaze back and forth between the two jounin, "You'll be escorting a man back to the Hidden Sand village. It may get dangerous."

"As dangerous as it would be in the village?" Masami asked. Tsunade frowned, eyeing the young woman carefully. "I can understand you wanting us to take the battle away from the village Tsunade-sama, and--"

"That's not it," she said, frown deepening. "After you deliver the man to the Sand village, I want you to get lost on the way home. I don't care how you do it, but make sure you do. That way they'll have a harder time finding you."

"Tsunade-sama," Masami rubbed the back of her neck nervously. "I worked with Itachi before. . . Well, you know. He'll find us no matter how lost we get."

"Still. Those are your orders," Tsunade said. "Now go and wake up your students. I want you to leave before dawn," they turned to leave. "One more thing, Masami," the younger woman turned back to the Hokage. "This is classified. That means you can't tell your brother."

"Understood," Masami said softly, and shut the door behind her.

"You get Sakura. I'll wake Naruto up then go get Sasuke," she turned and took off.

* * *

She was pounding on Naruto's door for nearly ten minutes before he finally opened it.

"Thank Kami-sama!" she muttered. The boy stared at her.

"Masami-sensei? What's going on?" his eyes suddenly shot wide open. "Did something happen to Sasuke?!"

"No, you baka," she said. "Get dressed and pack. Tsunade-sama just gave us a B-rank mission. Meet at my house in an hour, and don't be late."

"Us?"

"Team Seven and me," she replied, heading down the hallway. "One hour kid!"

Waking Sasuke up was easier. All she did was push open his door and he was on his feet.

"What's--"

"B-rank mission. The rest of the team is on their way. Hurry up and pack," she headed down to her brother's room in the back, twisting her hair nervously. She knocked on the door softly the first time, then louder the second. She knew that by then her brother would be awake.

"Nii-chan," she said, voice low. "I know you're awake."

The door slid open slowly, and she was met by a bleary Iruka. "What's going on?"

"B-rank mission," she replied, solemnly. "But it could be more."

"Your team?"

"Kakashi, Sakura, Naruto, and Sasuke," she replied. "I can't tell you anything else." Iruka nodded, sagging against the doorway.

"Be careful," he yawned, trying to give her a serious look at the same time. She rolled her eyes, moving forward and pulling him into a hug.

"You know I always am," she muttered as her brother hugged her back. "I love you, baka," she grinned, letting him go.

"I'm going to kill Kakashi if anything happens to you," he said seriously. She smirked.

"What could possibly happen?"

* * *

"Okay. We _should_ have gotten back to the village _yesterday_," Sakura said, sounding more than a little annoyed. "You got us lost, Masami-sensei."

"I did _not_," She said, pulling her hair out and trying it back up again. "_I'm_ not the one with the map."

"No, but you _are_ the one who told us to go this way," Kakashi pointed out, waving the map in her face.

"You could have said no."

"I believe I did."

"Shut up."

"Why should I? You're the one who got us lost."

"Shut up!"

"Nope," he slid his hands in his pockets and moved to walk in front of her.

"Baka!" she shouted, and jumped on his back.

"Hey! What're you--"

"Gimme that map!"

"Hey!" she made to snatch the map out of his hand, which threw him completely off-balance. The three students watched as their senseis tumbled to the ground. Sakura gasped and covered her mouth with her hands while Naruto just stared at the two of them. Sasuke rolled his eyes and stepped forward, pulling Masami off of the silver-haired jounin.

He could never understand how the two of them could be so ridiculously immature.

"Baka!" she snapped as her friend got to his feet. "Gimme that map!"

"Just for that, I think I won't."

"Bakamono!" she muttered, and looked at the students with a grin. "So, how 'bout we make camp for the night?"

Sasuke sighed and pointed to a small clearing just off the path. "That looks like as good a place as any," he muttered, obviously annoyed at the adults. _They got us lost. Two of Konoha's best jounins and they get us lost._ He blew a strand of hair out of his face. _How'd they manage that?_

"Hey, could you guys look for some firewood?" Masami asked, putting stones in a circle to make a fire ring.

"Yeah, sure," Sasuke shoved his hands into his pockets and strode off into the forest.

"Sasuke-kun! Wait up!"

"S-Sakura-chan! Wait for me!" Naruto ran after his two teammates. Masami smiled and shook her head, turning to face Kakashi.

"Sasuke's getting suspicious," she said. He raised an eyebrow at her.

"I would have guessed Sakura would pick up on it first," Kakashi smirked and took a sip of water from a canteen.

"Nah. Not while Sasuke's around. She's too busy trying to get in his pants," he choked. "Don't die. I can't handle three kids on my own," she muttered.

He glared at her. "It's your fault. What was with jumping on my back earlier?" she shrugged.

"I don't know. I felt like it," she stood up and brushed the dirt from her pants. Hands suddenly gripped her hips from behind.

"Something else you'd like to jump?" he murmured in her ear. She whipped around and pushed him off.

"Baka! The students could come back any second!" she hissed. He raised an eyebrow at her, and she could tell he was smirking under his mask. "Besides. We've only got a couple of minutes to talk about what to do next!"

"As you said. The students could come back any second," he said quietly stepping toward her again. "So what did you want to say?"

"There's been no sign of the Akatsuki," she replied. "The pair Tsunade said were coming or otherwise."

"I doubt they'd send anyone else. The last time they succeeded."

"Well, that's cause I was out on a mission."

"Which is probably why he chose that time. I don't know that he'd be able to face you."

"You think that's why Tsunade chose me to go with you?"

"No, I think it's because you stand a better chance of beating them then even Jiraiya does," she narrowed her eyes at him for only a moment.

"Isn't it bothering you that they haven't found us yet?"

"Well, you did get us pretty lost." She knew he was teasing, but for some reason it was infuriating right at that moment.

"I did not, baka!" she snapped. "That was all you and you know it!"

"So when you said 'this way is so much faster'--"

"Shut up, baka!"

"I'm not an idiot," she let out an infuriated yell and stalked off into the woods, muttering curses under her breath.

She walked until she had calmed down enough to not want to punch the living daylights out of the next person she met.

Unfortunately, the sun was setting, and she had no idea where she was. "Stupid Kakashi," she muttered, looking around. She was suddenly getting a very bad feeling, and wanted to be back with her team. "That baka. Now I really did get lost."

The hairs on the back of her neck stood up and she turned sharply and simply froze in place.

Red eyes stared back at her from a very familiar face. She swallowed hard, taking a step back. Then she stayed, rooted to the spot. The breeze pulled gently at the cloak the figure staring at her wore, shifting the red clouds into full view. It was the cloak of an Akatsuki member.

"Lost?" he was the first one to speak.

She couldn't even bring herself to answer right away, the shock was too much. "What do you want?"

"I think you know, Masami-san."

"Itachi, if you don't leave right now, I have orders to kill you," one of his eyebrows arched, but other than that he had no observable response that he'd even heard her. "I can and I will," he didn't move.

"I doubt it," she drew her katana. "Masami-san, we don't have to fight."

"I know what you're after," she said, eyes narrowing. "You're not getting the Kyuubi, or the boy."

"Do you even know this child?" he asked. "Is he worth dying to protect?"

"Even if I didn't know him, he's part of the village. I'd die to protect anyone there."

Suddenly, he was behind her. "Does that include Kakashi?" she spun, blue eyes narrowing.

"You know it does," he held his gaze. "It used to include you too."

"Masami-sensei!" she glanced in the direction of the shout. _Goddamn it, does Naruto have to be so loud?_

Suddenly, Itachi was standing in front of her, red eyes staring down into hers. "Don't get in my way," he murmured. "I don't want to have to kill you."

"Then don't try for the boy," she replied. He held her gaze for a moment longer, and then stepped back.

"Then I'm sorry, Masami-san," her eyes widened as Sasuke drew even with her.

"Get down!" she grabbed her student around the middle and took a flying leap to the side as Itachi's clone exploded.

She didn't even remember hitting the ground.


	7. Chapter 7

**A/n**: Bonus chapter as an apology

have fun

* * *

"Look. Guys, we'll explain everything when she wakes up, okay?"

"No! I want an explanation _now_!" Sasuke's voice was too loud in her ear. "Itachi practically killed us, and--"

"He knew Masami would get away," Kakashi's voice was gentler, and a whole lot closer than Sasuke's had been.

"What?"

"Who do you think he copied that jutsu from?" Kakashi asked. A hand brushed the hair away from her face, and she let her eyes flutter open.

"Kakashi?" he looked down at her, worry creasing his visible eye.

"Feeling better?" he asked. She blinked, trying to remember what happened. "Your head lost a fight with a tree."

"Oh."

"Left a pretty good dent in the tree too," he muttered. It was then that Masami realized that her head was in his lap. She tried to sit up, but a wave of dizziness made her lay right back down.

Her eyes suddenly went wide. "Naruto? Where's--"

"He's fine. _You're _not."

"Sasuke?" the boy's face appeared in her vision.

"I'm fine," he said, sounding thoroughly annoyed. "What happened?"

"Kakashi, you explain. I'll jump in later," he sighed heavily, playing with a strand of her hair.

"Hokage-sama found out that the Akatsuki were moving on Naruto again," he started. Masami heard the other two teenagers sit down opposite Sasuke. "So she sent us out on that B-rank mission to get us out of the village. She hoped that by doing that, she'd make it harder for them to find us."

"She ordered us to get lost on the way back," Masami put in. The three teenagers gaped at them.

"So that was all an _act_?!" Sakura shrieked. Masami nodded, then decided that it was a back idea when her stomach rolled.

"Pretty much," she said, smirking. "Except the fights over the map."

"I don't believe it!" Naruto shouted. Masami groaned, and Sakura punched him on the arm. "Ow!"

"BE QUIET!" Sakura shouted.

"Both of you, shut up," Kakashi snapped. "Or go somewhere else."

"Kakashi-chan, be nice," she murmured, catching the hand that was twirling her hair.

"Why would he use something that he knew we could get away from?" Sasuke asked. Kakashi squeezed Masami's hand.

"He probably didn't care about you getting away, Sasuke. He didn't want to kill Masami," Kakashi said. She squeezed his hand, closing her eyes.

"What are you talking about?"

"He was my Captain," she opened her eyes again and fixed her gaze on him. "My first year an a half in ANBU black ops, he was my captain. Kakashi seems to think he had a crush on me."

"More than that," Kakashi muttered darkly.

"Shut up and let me finish," she tried to glare at him, but it hurt. He rolled his eyes, but didn't continue. "Apparently what confirmed it was. . . that night," Sasuke's eyes widened.

"_Stupid Itachi," she muttered under her breath. "Forgetting reports, leaving his mask. What's with him lately?" she turned the corner and stopped, the first body at her feet. "What the--" she broke off when she saw the next one, and her feet moved on their own. She recognized these people. They were all of the Uchiha clan. _

"_Itachi!" she shouted, then cursed herself. Her friend could take care of himself, it was herself she should be worrying about. She finally reached his house and walked in to find his parents lying dead on the ground. _

_She turned and ran out into the street until she found his little brother, unconscious in the middle of the street. _

"_Oh god," she dropped beside the boy, gathering him up in her arms. "Sasuke," she gasped. He was still breathing. She scrambled to her feet, holding the small child as she raced to the hospital. _

_She told the nurses what happened, and they immediately sent for the Hokage. He talked with Sasuke, and came back looking grim. _

"_The boy managed to tell me it was Itachi before he passed out again." _

_Masami jumped to her feet, fists clenched. "No! He couldn't have! Sensei, it's just not possible!" _

"_I'm afraid it's very possible Masami," he said, eyes dark. "and it _is _what happened." _

"_I'm going to find him!" she said, stalking over to the door. The only move the Hokage made to stop her was to place a hand on her shoulder. She looked back at him. _

"_Masami, you will only get yourself killed."_

"_He's my friend, sensei," she replied. "I'm not going to let him go that easily."_

"_And if he did do this?" _

_Masami swallowed looking nervous. She thought of the entire clan, their blood staining the ground. Of the little boy now left without a family. "If he did this, then he's going to pay." _

_She waited. Sitting on top of the gate in her ANBU black ops mask, she watched for him. _

_After about twenty minutes, he headed for the giant doors. She dropped down lightly in front of him. His eyes narrowed, sweeping down her face and outfit. _

"_Masami, move," he said, voice low and calm, just as it always was. _

"_Did you do it?" she asked, slipping the panda mask off of her face. "Everybody thinks you did it!" _

"_Did what?" he asked. Her hands were shaking. _

"_Your clan. I saw them. They're all dead."_

"_Oh," he said. "That." _

"_Your brother said you did it." _

"_Well, believe him."_

_Masami just stood there, stunned. "What? Y-you slaughtered them?" he didn't make any attempt to reply. "Why?" _

"_A test," he replied with a shrug. "I'm stronger than all of them, and now everybody knows it," he held her gaze. "Now get out of my way," she still stood there, stunned, her mind racing. _

"_You just killed them to test yourself?" she asked. _

_He sighed. "Yes. Now move," he sounded as though he were talking to a small child. _

_She suddenly made a decision. "No," his eyebrows shot up. "You're my friend Itachi, but as a ninja of this village, I can't let you leave." _

"_I'm not going to fight you, Masami-san. Now, give up and get out of my way!" he looked upset, though she didn't fully understand why. He hadn't even looked guilty when he admitted to killing his family, and now he was upset? _

"_No," she set her jaw. "I'm going to stay right here. In your way. Whatever you try to do to this village again, I'm always going to be in your way." _

"Woah. You actually said that to him?" Naruto asked. "I met him, and he's one scary guy."

"Well, of course I was scared." she said. "The guy had just killed almost his entire family, and I was the only thing left standing in his way."

"So what happened then?" Sakura asked. Masami shrugged.

"I don't know. The next thing I knew, I was in a hospital bed hearing Kakashi yelling at one of the nurses," he sighed.

"He was yelling at a nurse?"

"Yeah. I believe he made her cry."

"She was way too sensitive," Kakashi protested.

"You were yelling at her!"

"Your point?" she let go of his hand and poked him in the stomach.

"Shut up."

"Wait, so he did attack you?"

Masami shrugged. "I don't know. I think he did, but Kakashi thinks that he just used a genjutsu on me, made me fall asleep."

"That would make sense."

"Wait, so you made up this exploding clone jutsu?" Naruto asked. Masami nodded. "Cool! Can you teach me?"

"When we get back to the village," Kakashi said. "We need to head back."

"I thought we were lost," Sakura said.

"They only wanted us to think that," Sasuke said, then glanced at the two jounin. "Right?"

"Well, originally, yes."

"WHAT?!" The three students shouted simultaneously.

"Stop shouting," Kakashi said. Masami tried once again to sit up, but the wave of dizziness stopped her once again. Suddenly, she found herself in the air, held tightly against a rather well-defined chest.

"Kakashi-chan! Put me down!"

"You can't even sit up," he said as Sasuke picked up Masami's pack. "There's no way I'm going to let you try and walk," Sighing, Masami just folded her arms across her chest.

"If you drop me, we're going to have some issues," she said darkly.

Kakashi just chuckled. "I'd never let you fall, Masami-hime."

Sasuke rolled his eyes, shoving his hands in his pockets. "Can we go now?"

* * *

The next time Masami woke up, people were shouting. Miraculously, her head wasn't pounding.

She opened her eyes and found that she was propped up against a tree, Team Seven standing in front of her. Between their legs, she could see two figures. Both wore black cloaks with red clouds. She gasped, scrambling to her feet.

"Masami," Kakashi grabbed her arm as she moved forward. "_No_," he held her firmly in place, grip tight.

"But--"

"DIEEE!!" the blond boy leapt forward, running at Itachi.

"Naruto! Idiot!!" Sasuke shouted. "Get your ass back here!"

"Naruto! Stop!" Masami shouted. She tried to step forward, but her head throbbed painfully and she gasped, her knees starting to give out. She found herself held against Kakashi. Sasuke and Sakura were running to help Naruto.

She pushed him away from her. "Help them," she stumbled backward, grabbing a tree to keep herself upright.

Kisame swung his sword into Naruto, and Masami silently thanked Kami-sama that the blade wasn't bare, or Naruto would have been a bloody mess. He flew back into the tree next to her, and was joined by Sakura a few seconds later.

The missing-nin from the mist was suddenly in front of her, eyeing her quizzically.

"So you're Umino Masami," she pushed herself up off the tree and managed to glare at him.

"Leave her Kisame. She's not a threat," Itachi ordered, sending Sasuke flying back to join his friends. Kisame suddenly swung around, his sword slamming into Kakashi. The jounin's body flew and landed next to his students. The three teens were coming back to consciousness, but just barely.

"Damn," he said. Masami pushed herself off the tree, yanking four shuriken out and threw them all at Kisame. He spun and managed to duck them all before swinging his sword at her. She ducked, but it managed to catch her hair.

She felt almost all of her chakra leave her body. She collapsed to the ground, her limbs trembling with the effort of staying off the ground.

"Give up, Masami-san," she heard her former friend say from far away. "Give up."

"_Give up and get out of my way!"_ Her jaw tightened.

"_I'm going to stay right here. In your way. Whatever you try to do to this village again, I'm always going to be in your way."_

She pushed herself to her knees, and with trembling fingers, she slowly formed the seals she wanted.

Kisame laughed. "Your chakra's almost gone, kunochi. What are you going to do?"

Her body was shaking with exhaustion, but she had to finish it. She couldn't afford not to. "_Heaven's gate jutsu!_"

Itachi's eyes widened as the blast of chakra threw Kisame back past him and into a tree. He threw a hand up to shield his eyes from the dirt that had been kicked up.

He lowered his hand again and froze. Masami was on her feet. The couple of scratches she had on her face were healing before his eyes. She reached up and yanked the bandage off her head, letting it fall to the ground. The light around her faded, but when she opened her eyes, he could see a pure white light.

It was like looking straight into the sun. He couldn't look her directly in the eyes.

She winked out of sight for a second, then appeared in front of Team Seven, her eyes no longer glowing.

"I'm never giving up Itachi," she said, voice low and dangerous. "And I'm never getting out of your way. You want the boy, you have to go through me. You want to fight Sasuke, you get past me first. And if you really want to kill Kakashi, you're going to have to _kill _me."

"Do you even know what that child has in him?" Itachi asked. "What he has done to you?"

"I know exactly what he is," she said. "He's a great ninja from the Hidden Leaf. I told you when you left Itachi. Whatever you try to do to this village again, I'm always going to be in your way."

"Very well then," he said.

_**Her world went dropped away and she found herself in a world of black, white and red. She'd heard Kakashi tell her about this. **_

"_**Let me out of here," she said. Itachi moved so he was standing right in front of her. **_

"_**I can't do that," he murmured, hands sliding up her arms She tried to step away from him, but there was suddenly a wall right behind her. He pinned her to it. **_

_**This wasn't like when Kakashi had pinned her to the wall of his apartment. Then she had been breathless with anticipation and. . . something else. **_

_**In this world, she was breathless with fear. A blinding terror of the man she had once respected and called her friend. **_

"_**In this world, I control everything. Space, time--"**_

"_**Not me," she said, narrowing her eyes in a burning glare. "Whatever you want, I'm not giving it to you." **_

"_**Who said anything about taking anything from you? I'm going to give something to you," his hands left her arms and gripped her hips, pulling her against him. She shoved him off and started to run, only to run headlong into him. She bounced off of him and stumbled to the ground. **_

"_**I control everything," he said, suddenly on top of her. Her eyes widened in a blind panic. "Remember that." **_

"Get off!" she broke away, and was suddenly back in the real world. Itachi's eyes widened.

"How--?"

"I told you," she gasped, getting to her feet. "You can't control me!" she moved her hands to the arm warmers and pulled them off, dropping the weights underneath them to the ground. She shed the weights from her legs at the same time, and drew her katana.

"And guess what _Captain_?" she said, shifting her grip. He raised an eyebrow at her. "I'll bet not even _your_ eyes can follow me now," she seemed to wink out of existence for a second, and then skidded to a stop in front of Team Seven again.

Itachi's eyes widened comically as his Akatsuki robe suddenly fell off of his body in pieces. Next to him, Kisame's sword suddenly vanished.

They looked back up at her. She was grinning, swinging Samehada around her head.

"What?! Samehada!" he sputtered, apparently shocked beyond words. "It's not possible!"

"Oh, it's very possible," Itachi said, narrowing his eyes. "We're leaving."

"Not so fast," Masami suddenly had him in a headlock, katana to his throat. "If you ever harm even one hair on Naruto's head, I will hunt you down," she whispered icily. "You lay a finger on him or Kakashi ever again, and I will never stop hunting you. Not even the Akatsuki will be able to protect you from me."

Itachi didn't reply. "If you ever set foot in Konoha again, I'll be there to be in your way," if he made even one move, he was dead and he knew it. So he stayed completely still. "I once respected you. I called you my friend. I considered you part of my family. But the day you raised your sword against your own family, it ended. Whatever we could have had, whatever we could have been ended that second. Because now, I hate you," in a flash, she was standing in front of her friends. The two missing-nins left a few seconds later.

Masami sheathed her katana and dropped, checking the student's pulses first. She sighed in relief. They were all alive.

"What, you're not going to make sure I'm alive?" Kakashi asked, pretending to be hurt.

"I knew you were, baka," she muttered, getting to her feet.

"I'm not an idiot," he said.

"Right. That's why you got your chakra zapped."

"Masami, what did you say to him?" she lifted her eyes to meet his and chewed on her lip.

"I told him that if he ever hurt you or Naruto again, or set foot in Konoha again, I'd kill him," Kakashi's eyes narrowed. She blew a piece of hair out of her face. She never could lie to him. "And that whatever we did have or could have had with each other ended the second he lifted a sword against his own family," she added quietly.

Suddenly, she found herself enfolded in Kakashi's arms, held tightly against him.

She just let him hold her, too tired to feel anything but safe.

* * *

She wasn't entirely sure how, but they managed to get back to Konoha. Kakashi refused to let Masami admit him to the hospital when they admitted their students, and left. 

Masami sat in the corner, watching the three teenagers. She didn't know what to think anymore. Before they'd left, she'd thought something had been happening with Kakashi, but now he had her completely confused.

She pulled a hand through her hair, and stood, walking over to the window, leaning against the cool glass. She'd left it to Kakashi to report to Tsunade. Since the nurses had put all three teenagers into one room, she hadn't left. It had been three days, and they were still sleeping.

"Masami-sensei?" she turned and met the dark eyes of her student. She didn't feel like moving, so she just watched him. "What--"

"Kakashi and I brought the three of you back," she replied. "You're lucky to be alive at all."

"Itachi. He--" Sasuke sat up.

"He's not going to try for Naruto for a while," she replied, stepping over to the boy's bed. She put a hand on his shoulder, gently pushing him back down. "Go back to sleep," she pulled the blankets back up over him and leaned down, planting a soft kiss on his forehead when he started to protest. "Please, nii-chan."

He opened his mouth to reply, but then seemed to change his mind, and just smiled. "Goodnight, onee-chan," he murmured, drifting back to sleep. Masami sat on the edge of his bed for a few minutes before getting up and heading down to the nurse's station. She needed some coffee.

* * *

"She told him WHAT?!" Tsunade slammed her hands into her desk. The wood cracked, and Kakashi eyed it warily, wondering if it she would actually break the desk. 

"That if he ever hurt Naruto or I again, or set foot in Konoha, she'd kill him," the jounin said, again. Tsunade sighed heavily and flopped down in her chair.

"That's what I thought you said," she shook her head. "I need some sake," she looked over at Kakashi after a few moments of silence.

"She's incredibly powerful."

He nodded slowly, unsure of where the conversation was going. "I know."

"And she cares deeply for everyone in the village."

"Yes. . ."

Tsunade lifted her eyes to look at the jounin. "Would she ever want to be Hokage?"

For a moment, Kakashi wondered if he'd ever be able to form words again. "What?"

"Would she ever agree to be Hokage?" Tsunade asked again. "I'm not as young as I look," she said, getting to her feet again. "And Orochimaru is not going to wait forever to attack Konoha again. I need to have a successor chosen and approved, so chaos doesn't happen, like when Sarutobi-sensei was killed," she looked at Kakashi. "I am not in the habit of explaining myself, so tell me! Do you think that she would ever agree to being the Hokage?"

Kakashi hesitated, then shrugged. "I don't know. Masami is. . . Very difficult to figure out. You can never predict how she will react, because every time you try, she surprises you anyway," he slid his hands into his pockets. "Was there anything else, Hokage-sama?"

She sighed, flopping back down in her chair. "Nah. Go," Kakashi gave a slight bow and headed out.


	8. Chapter 8

**A/n**: yet another bonus cahppie for you guys.

Enjoy!

* * *

Kakashi wandered aimlessly around the village, and found himself in front of the hospital. Shaking his head, he pushed open the door and headed up to the room his students were sharing. He stepped inside, and smiled. Masami was perched on the wide windowsill, a cup of coffee long since cold pinned beneath fingers limp in sleep.

He sighed, gently taking the cup out of her hands. He turned, setting it down on the beside table closest to him. He smile when he saw whose bed it was. She'd decided to sit as close as she possibly could to Sasuke's bed.

Shaking his head, he gathered her into his arms and carried her out of the hospital. He knew she was going to kill him later, but he wanted her to actually get some sleep. In a real bed. She hadn't slept since she'd brought them back, and had punched one of the doctors who tried to take her away from the three young students.

He tapped lightly on the front door. It wasn't too late, and he knew that Iruka would more than likely still be up.

The door slid open, and Iruka's eyes widened. "Kakashi, what--" his eyes widened, then narrowed when he realized Kakashi was carrying his sister.

"She fell asleep, watching her student," he explained quietly as Iruka stepped aside so Kakashi could carry her inside. "I don't think she's slept for a couple of days."

"Well, that explains why she didn't wake up," Iruka muttered.

"And why I'm not sticking around until she wakes up," Kakashi said, laying her down in her bed. "When she wakes up and wants to kill me, I'll be at the hospital, with the kids," Iruka nodded, folding his arms over his chest.

"She'll be fine with me. Go," Kakashi nodded and headed back to watch over his students.

* * *

Iruka was frowning at the paperwork on his desk when an angry shout came from upstairs. Grinning, he got to his feet in time to see Masami come tumbling down the stairs and land in a heap at the bottom. She jumped to her feet, fists clenched. 

"Nii-chan! Stop grinning! Where is he!? I'm going to kill him!"

"He's at the hospital. He dropped you off last night and went back," she muttered something Iruka was sure wasn't pleasant under her breath and marched back upstairs.

He was in the kitchen when she came down twenty minutes later, out of her normal kunoichi outfit. He paused. Her hair, still wet from a bath was tied back in a plait which trailed down her back. 

"Are you feeling okay?" he asked. He hadn't seen her wear anything but her uniform for years.

"I'm fine," she said mildly, rubbing the back of her neck. "I'll see you later," she pulled on a jacket and left.

* * *

Kakashi woke up as the door opened, and froze. _Am I still dreaming?_

Masami was wearing normal clothes. Well, normal for people who weren't her.

Most surprising of all, it was a _dress_. And not just any dress either. It was a dress that Kakashi had given her as a joke when she had made ANBU. She'd made a face at him, and he'd laughed before giving her his real present, her katana.

But she'd never worn it before.

"Masami-chan, you're--"

"Ack! I love this dress!" Sakura threw her arms around the woman's neck in a tight hug, then went about poking and prodding the blue fabric, despite the fact that it was still on Masami.

"Hey! What are you--"

"It's beautiful! It matches your eyes? Where'd you--"

"--doing? Get the bloody hell off of me! I swear--"

"--get this? It's amazing! And the cut is so flattering! I just can't--"

"--going to hang you out the window by your fluffy pink hair you little--"

"--believe this!"

"Stop laughing Kakashi-chan! It's your fault anyway!" that shut him up.

"What do you mean, it's Kakashi-sensei's fault?"

"Glad to see you're feeling better, Sakura."

"Sasuke!!" the girl rushed over and began chatting excitedly at the dark-haired boy.

Kakashi slid an arm around Masami's shoulders. "It looks nice," he said quietly. She blushed, elbowing him.

"AH!! You're touching her!" they looked over at Naruto, who was sitting upright in his bed, pointing at the two jounin. Masami clamped a hand over her mouth, stifling a giggle. "and you're in normal clothes!"

"Welcome back, Naruto," Kakashi said, grinning at the stunned look on his student's face.

"How did we get here?" Sasuke asked. Kakashi glanced sideways at Masami.

"My summoning," she replied. "It brought all of us back here."

"Really? Can you show us?" Sakura asked, finally giving up on Sasuke for the moment. Masami's eyes flickered around the room and her lips curved into a smile.

"Sometime when we're not inside." She replied. "She's likely to destroy half this wing." She grinned at the students. "How about we all go get some ramen?"

"YES!!"

* * *

After Naruto, Sasuke and Sakura had disappeared, presumably to go someplace together, leaving Kakashi and Masami at the ramen stand. 

"Well, come on," he said, getting up. Masami looked up at him.

"What?"

"We're going for a walk."

"We are?"

"Yup," he pulled her to her feet, and then down the street by the hand.

"Kakashi, where are we going?" she asked.

"Just shut up and come on."

She frowned. He was being uncharacteristically cryptic. "Kakashi-chan. . ." she sighed as he led her into his apartment building and up to his apartment.

He shut the door behind them, and before she could process what happened, she was pinned between the wall and Kakashi, his lips covering hers. She inhaled sharply as he gripped her hips, and pushed him off. He didn't go far, but stayed back just out of reach.

"Kakashi-chan, we need to talk about this," he moved forward again, a smirk set in place.

"Why would that be?"

She pressed a hand flat to his chest to stop him from moving any closer. "Because I don't want to sneak away to your apartment just to steal a few kisses," he suddenly smiled and stepped back.

"You know me better than to think that's all I want," he said. Her hand fell back to her side. "Especially when it comes from you," she was not longer stopping him, but he still didn't move forward. His eyes searched hers for a second, and then he stepped back.

"Kakashi-chan, I--"

He cut her off, sliding his mask back up over his face. "It's fine," he turned away from her, so she couldn't see his eyes.

"Kakashi, please. Don't," she grabbed his shoulder and turned him to face her. "I don't want--" she broke off, and Kakashi's eyes narrowed.

"You don't want what?" he asked. She chewed on her lip, then sighed.

"I don't want to leave with us fighting."

"Who said anything about leaving?" he asked. Eyes wide, she took a step back. He gripped her arms. "Masami-chan!"

"You're not supposed to know," she replied, her voice shaking. "No one's supposed to know, not yet."

"To know _what_?!"

She hesitated, but only for a moment. "As soon as Sasuke fully recovers, I'm taking him away," Kakashi stared at her in shock. "He needs to be trained. _I_ need to train him."

Kakashi frowned at her. "You can do that here."

"No," his frown deepened to a scowl. "Remember when the Third sent me on a mission for two years, right after Itachi left?" Kakashi nodded, expression dark. "There was no mission. He sent me to a man called Himura. Himura-senpai trained me for those two years, then sent me back. I sent him a message a few weeks ago, and he agreed to let me bring Sasuke to him."

Kakashi stared at her. "How long?"

She couldn't hold his gaze anymore, so she looked to the floor. "A few years. I don't know."

"Years?" he asked, his grip on her loosening. "You're going away for years? Again?"

She chewed on her lip, hesitating. "Yes," another second's hesitation. "But--"

"I don't care about 'buts'." he said. "I--"

"Would you listen to me for three seconds?!" she shouted, shoving him away from her. "Jiraiya-sama took off to find out more about the Akatsuki, and he left Naruto here! I'm bringing Naruto with me too!" Kakashi tensed, staring at her. He didn't seem to understand what she was saying.

She knew what he was thinking. She knew that inside, he was telling himself that she was taking Naruto and Sasuke away and the three of them would be leaving him alone.

"Baka!" she hit him. "As Naruto's sensei, you're coming!" his eyes widened in surprise so fast it was almost comical. Suddenly, she found herself against the wall again, her face cupped in his hands, her forehead pressed against his. He still had his mask on, and his eyes were closed. "Baka." she murmured, wrapping her fingers gently around his wrists. "You think I'd just leave you here again?"

"I'm not thinking right now," he muttered, his hands sliding down to her shoulders. She pulled his mask down.

"Then don't think," she said, pressing her lips gently to his. "Don't think."

* * *

He was hours late. Kakashi they could understand, but _both_ Kakashi and Masami? Sasuke blew a piece of hair out of his face and scowled at Naruto. 

"Would you quit pacing?" he asked. Naruto threw him a glare over his shoulder.

"No. It's not like Masami-sensei to be late, is it?"

"No," Sasuke replied shortly. "But she said to wait here, so we're going to wait here."

"She didn't say anything to you this morning?"

"No. She didn't come home yesterday," he scowled at his friend.

"Great. Kakashi-sensei didn't show up for training yesterday, and now Masami-sensei's missing too," suddenly, Sasuke stood and headed off down the street.

"Hey! Where're you going?!"

"To find them," Sasuke called over his shoulder. "You coming?" with an annoyed cry, Naruto ran after him.

* * *

Sasuke eyed the door warily, wondering if he really was right about this. Naruto tapped him on the shoulder.

"So, are you going to knock, or what?" he whispered. Sasuke shoved him away and stepped up to the door, tapping his knuckles against the wood sharply.

There was a muffled squeak and a thump inside, and then several more thumps. Sasuke pressed his ear to the door.

". . . Okay?"

"Of course I'm okay, you baka! Ack! We're late!"

"We're always late."

"No, _you're_ always late!" Sasuke knocked again. "Oh crap. Who's at the door?"

"Don't know," Sasuke stepped back and knocked one more time.

"Kakashi-sensei?" Naruto called. "Are you okay?"

The door opened, and a shirtless Kakashi stood in front of them. "Hang on," his eyes crinkled in a grin as he shut the door again.

When he opened the door again, he was fully dressed and had his forehead protector over his eye again. "Sorry. I had a late night."

"So where did Masami-sensei go?"

"Baka," she appeared behind Kakashi, and elbowed him hard. "Told you he wouldn't fall for it."

"All right. Fine. You win," Kakashi waved his hand and headed down the hall, wincing as soon as his back was turned.

Masami slung her arms over the boys' shoulders and led them down the hall.

"Okay. We've got some news for you guys," she said. They both looked up at her. "The two of you will be training with my old senpai, Himura."

"Himura?" Naruto shook his head. "Never heard of him."

"Many of the best ninja are those you never hear the name of," Kakashi said, turning back to look at them. "Had you ever heard of Masami before?" Naruto shook his head.

"If an enemy does not know you, you have the element of surprise on your side," she said. "That's what Himura-senpai always says," she grinned. "So the two of you are going to be staying with him for a year or two."

"You mean, I'm going to have to live with him for a _year_," Naruto made a face at Sasuke, who scowled at him.

"Kakashi-chan and me too," she replied, grinning. "I'm sure he could use a break."

The jounin threw a glance at her over her shoulder and met her eyes, smirking before he turned back around. "You need to pack," she went on. "We're leaving in three days."

"What about Sakura-chan?" Naruto asked. Masami sighed.

"I'm sorry. Tsunade-sama took her on as her student, and she wouldn't agree to let me bring her with us. Sakura will learn better here though. You'll be a team again, don't worry," she squeezed the boy's shoulders. "No go on and pack," she let them go and watched them run off together.

"Why can't _you_ train both of them?" Kakashi asked. "Why not here in Konoha?"

She rubbed the back of her neck, turning to look at him. "Because. I don't have the right frame of mind to teach them the way they need to be taught."

"And what frame of mind is that?"

"To teach the two of them the strength they want, I'd have to be merciless," she said, a smile parting her lips. "And with those two I can't do that."

"And why not?"

She scowled at him. She knew that he knew her well enough to know that she didn't like admitting things like this. "Because I love the both of them."

Kakashi slid his hand into hers, lacing their fingers together. She was surprised at first. He wasn't one for public displays. She held his gaze for a second before he raised their hands to his lips and pressed his masked lips to her finger. She smiled at him.

"So, you don't care what people are going to think?" she asked. Kakashi pulled her hand, gently bringing her closer.

"The entire village is used to seeing us together," he replied softly. "How is this going to surprise them?"

"KAKSHI!!!"

"Shit," Masami muttered. Kakashi chuckled.

"I DEMAND THAT YOU UNHAND THE FAIR MASAMI-HIME AND LET HER DIVIDE HER ATTENTIONS!!"

Kakashi turned to face Gai, his arm snaking around Masami's waist. A jolt ran through her body as he pulled her against him. "Nah. I don't think I want to share," he turned them around and led her away. She giggled, throwing her own arm around his waist as they walked off, still hearing Gai sputtering behind them.

* * *

She stared up at him. "No," the whisper escaped her lips as she watched Itachi walking over to Sasuke's cooling body. "No!" she shouted it this time, getting to her feet and running at him. He laughed and she was thrown to the side, pushed out of the way of an attack by Kakashi. 

"NO!" she screamed it this time, and scrambled to her feet. She tried to stop the bleeding, but it wasn't working.

She looked down at the blood swimming around her hands as the light faded from Kakashi's eyes. Her heart leapt into her throat, and her eyes felt unnaturally dry.

"Stay back!" she looked up at the small blond head of the boy standing in front of her. "He's going to attack!"

"Attack is right, boy," her heart stopped for a split second. It was Orochimaru's voice.

But it was coming from Sasuke's body. The long tongue flicked out of her student's mouth, and he grinned. Orochimaru's laugh came from Sasuke's mouth. The tears fell then as she opened her mouth, fingers gripping the dirt beneath her for dear life.

"NOOO!!!" she screamed so long and loud that she was afraid she was going to loose her voice.

Suddenly, she was being held, rocked gently back and forth. Someone was murmuring something to her, but she couldn't hear them. She wrapped her arms around them let herself cry.

The echo of her scream died in her ears, and she could hear Kakashi's voice. "Oh god. Stop crying," he murmured, his arms tightening around her. "Shh. It was only a dream. You're safe now."

"Not me," she sobbed, unable to control herself. She didn't even question what Kakashi was doing in her room in the middle of the night. She was just grateful that he was there. "Not me."

"Is she okay?" Iruka asked from somewhere behind Kakashi, who was still murmuring in her ear.

"Kakashi-sensei?" at the sound of Sasuke's voice, Masami tensed and pushed Kakashi away, sitting up so she could look at him, make sure he was all right.

Sasuke stood frozen as her face appeared over Kakashi's shoulder. There was so much pain behind her eyes, eyes that were usually dancing with a hidden joke.

"Sasuke," she breathed, and broke down sobbing against Kakashi again.

"She'll be fine," Kakashi said. "It was just a dream," he held her tightly, more to her than to the others.

He let her cry herself to sleep again on his shoulders. When he was sure she was resting easy, he pulled the covers back up and stepped out into the hall. Iruka and Sasuke were sitting against opposite walls. They jumped to their feet as he closed her door quietly behind him.

"She'll be fine," Kakashi said. "It was just a dream."

"She was screaming," Sasuke protested.

"This isn't unusual for her," Iruka told him. "But usually she wakes herself up. She's never woken up sobbing before," he looked up at Kakashi.

"She didn't tell me anything," the jounin replied. "She just cried."

* * *

Masami made her way into the kitchen the next morning, and collapsed into her chair, letting her head drop on the table. 

"Morning," Iruka said, putting her breakfast down in front of her. "Did you get any more sleep?"

"Not really," she muttered. She lifted her head and folded her arms on the table. Dropping her chin on her wrists, she looked up at him. "What was Kakashi doing here that late?"

"Ah," Iruka grinned, rubbing the back of his neck nervously. "We were talking."

"About?"

"You, actually," she blinked sleepily at him, waiting for him to go on. "About you and him. Together." She didn't seem to understand him. "He told me what happened between you two a few nights ago."

She didn't seem surprised. "Oh. Did you try to kill him?"

"Well. . ." she sighed.

"Tell me. I'll find out either way," she didn't have the energy to sound threatening.

"Well, I did hit him," Iruka shrugged. "We didn't really get farther than that, cause you started screaming. As soon as he heard that, he took off like a bat out of hell," Iruka shook his head. "I let it drop after that. It's not like I couldn't see it coming."

She sighed. "He told you about the mission too."

Iruka shook his head. She never ceased to amaze him. "How'd you guess that?"

"You did my laundry," she replied. "And you're supposed to have a class right now."

"Right," he chuckled. "I just thought, since you're leaving tomorrow, that I should spend the day with you."

"Sorry I'm not going to be friendly company today," she muttered, poking at her breakfast with her chopsticks.

"You're never friendly," her brother replied, sitting down in front of her, grinning as she glared at him. "At least, not in the morning," still grinning, he leaned back in his chair. "And it sounds like Kakashi is going to have to get used to that."

She choked on her breakfast. After she'd stopped coughing, she shucked her chopsticks at him. "I am _not_ having this conversation with you," she said, pointing a finger at him. "No way," he was still grinning at her, and didn't reply. "I'm serious!"

"Fine," he held up his hands in a form of surrender.

"Good," she got up. "So what'd you have in mind for today?"

"Well, we haven't been out to--"

"Fine," her face darkened. "Fine, let's go."


	9. Chapter 9

They stood in front of the memorial, together, arms around each other's shoulders. She could understand why he'd wanted to come here first. It was better to get the sad things out of the way first, and then let the rest of their day be happy.

"They wouldn't want us to still be sad," she murmured.

"The loss of a parent is always sad," Iruka replied. "But it's not like we're going around bursting into tears every five seconds."

She glanced sideways at him. "Not anymore anyway," he glared at her.

"Hey!"

Shaking her head, she slid her hands into her pockets. "Nii-chan, could you give me a minute?" he nodded and turned to go.

"I'll wait."

_When I lost my parents, no one seemed to care. They didn't have time for me. They just forgot I was there._

He regretted the words he'd spoken to Naruto, but they'd been true. He'd lost his parents and his sister the same day.

He smiled, glancing back at his sister as she traced the name of her friend with her fingers. He'd lost her to what seemed like an impossible black void of vengeance, and Kakashi had picked her up and carried her home.

Quite literally.

_Iruka fell out of bed as someone pounded on the front door. "Oi! Iruka!" he scrambled to his feet, untangling himself from his blankets. He stumbled down the hall and flung open the door, standing frozen in place when he saw who it was. _

"_K-Kakashi?" he stammered. "What are--" he looked down at the bundle in the jounin's arms and felt his heart nearly stop. He blinked rapidly, trying to stop the tears that threatened to fall. _

_He was carrying Masami. After three years, his sister was home, and she was safe. _

"_Iruka. She's not exactly a feather," Kakashi said gently. The stunned young man just stepped aside and let the two of them in. Kakashi set her down on the couch, and turned to the stunned young man, rubbing his arms. _

"_I'm sorry," he looked up at the younger man. Iruka stared at him, unable to do anything else. "It had to be hard for you, not knowing where she was," Iruka still couldn't speak, though he'd regained control over his body. He shut the front door. "She's still in bad shape, but I know she wanted to come home to you," Kakashi ran a hand through his hair slowly, exhaustion showing through. _

_Iruka was finally able to speak. _

"_What happened?" he demanded. _

_Kakashi shook his head. "Too many things," he replied. "Too many," his voice dropped, and it seemed like he wasn't even aware of Iruka's presence anymore. "She's not the same," he looked back at Iruka, his voice hardening. "Don't try to ask her what happened. She'll tell you when she's ready." _

* * *

Unfortunately, the news that they were leaving to train had not stayed a secret. Masami guessed that it had been Naruto's fault, but she wasn't going to point any fingers.

Tsunade had booked a restaurant for the entire night, and had decided to throw a party. She'd invited what seemed like half the ninja in the village.

Masami didn't like big parties. She and Sasuke were sitting in the corner, watching the people at the party warily.

"We're not going attack you two, you know," Kakashi said, leaning against the wall next to Masami. She raised an eyebrow at him.

"I know," she muttered, expression dark. "I just don't like dancing."

He took her hand in his, lacing his fingers with hers. She blushed visibly. "Even if it's with me?"

"Maybe a little more like dancing," she said, a smile tugging at her lips. Next to her, Sasuke rolled his eyes. "I saw that," she muttered. He just raised an eyebrow.

"I don't know what you mean," he said with a smile. She made a face at him as Kakashi dragged her out of the corner and out on to the dance floor.

"Sasuke-kun?" he looked up at Sakura as she approached him shyly. "I was wondering, I mean. . . Do you. . ." she trailed off, blushing. Smirking, Sasuke straightened, pushing himself off the wall. He held out a hand.

"Dance?" her eyes widened in shock and what appeared to be terror. She apparently hadn't though that he actually would dance with her. "Come on Sakura," he said, taking her hand and pulling her out into the mass of bodies. "It's my last night."

Sakura couldn't believe the change that had come over Sasuke in the past few months. He smiled a lot more now, and was openly showing people he cared. He'd stopped on an errand just to talk to her several times, and gone out of his way to walk her home once when Masami had decided to let her come and train with them.

He was different now, and it was all thanks to Masami. She had taken him in, given him a home and the kind of family that she, Naruto, and Kakashi hadn't been able to give him.

Sighing, she just danced with him, letting her thoughts trail around. They landed on Masami as she spotted the young woman across the room, dancing with Kakashi, a wide grin on her face.

She smiled. She couldn't think of a better girl for her sensei. Masami was sensitive, sometimes childish, and intense. She could be as immature as Naruto one minute and then as serious and determined as Sasuke the next. She'd seen her fight before, and knew that even without using the Heaven's Gate Jutsu, she was incredibly strong.

Training with whoever taught her was going to make Sasuke strong.

She just knew it.

* * *

They stood at the gates just as dawn was breaking over the treetops, looking back at their village in the early morning light. The four of them would not see this sight for another two years, at least.

Masami slid her arms around the two boy's shoulders, pulling them close.

"Go say good-bye," she murmured. Their eyes narrowed in confusion until Masami straightened. "Sakura, come out and say a proper good-bye," the younger girl sheepishly appeared, embarrassed as being caught. As the pink-haired girl hugged both boys (though, admittedly, Sasuke's hug was longer), Masami walked about a hundred feet down the path before slicing her thumb on a kunai and slamming her hand to the ground.

A seal spread out from her hand, and there was a loud crack of displaced air as a giant golden bird stretched its wings and let out a rather loud yawn.

No, bird was to bland of a term for the creature now in front of them. The neck was long and slim, like a heron's, but the rest of it was built more like a swan. That still didn't account for the strange sort of plumage on the top of the head and the array of feathers on its tail. Its was easily three times as tall as the woman standing in front of her, with a wingspan of several times more than that.

"Amaterasu," Masami smiled, reaching out her hand. The bird's head dipped down, its beak just barely brushing her hand. A broad, warm smile broke out over Masami's face and she reached forward, trailing her slim hand down the golden feathers. "Guess who we're going to visit?"

The bird cocked its head and eyed her carefully. It let out a small screech and nudged her shoulder with the tip of its beak. She grinned, and looked over at her stunned comrades.

"Well, come on," she said. "Get on."

"WHAT?!" Naruto gaped at her. "You want us to get on the thing?!"

"It's not a 'thing' Naruto," she snapped. "It's my summoning. You _did_ say you wanted to see it, remember?"

"Ah. . ." the boy trailed off as Kakashi stepped up to the great bird, laying a hand on the silky golden feathers.

"Amaterasu," he murmured. "It fits," Masami smiled, and grabbed his hand, leading him over to the other side of the huge wing, and climbed on.

"Come on," she turned back to the two boys, still on the ground. Naruto was trying to hide behind Sasuke. "Would you two quit cowering and get on?" they didn't move. "Well, unless you want to walk. It's going to be more than two weeks that way," Naruto suddenly darted around Sasuke and jumped up, allowing Kakashi to pull him up to sit behind him.

"Let's go!"

Masami looked back at the blond boy. "Put on your coat," she said, zipping her own closed as Sasuke climbed up behind his friend.

"What? It's summer!"

"I told you to pack a coat," she said. "Where we're going, it's already on its way to winter."

"Well, I did, but its at the bottom of my pack," Naruto protested.

"Dig it out," Kakashi said. Naruto scowled as Sasuke chuckled behind him.

"Shut up asshole," he muttered darkly, fishing his coat out of his bag.

"Dobe," Sasuke muttered under his breath as Naruto pulled on his jacket. They all called out a farewell to Sakura as the bird stretched its wings and took off into the sky.

* * *

_She stared down at the bruised and bloodied body of her sensei, eyes flat and cold. They were the eyes of a killer, full of hate, vengeance and anger. _

"_Go ahead and do it!" Orochimaru spat a mouthful of blood on the ground. "Kill me. Have your revenge!" her heart was screaming for her to lift the sword in her hands and plunge it straight down through the man's heart, to pierce through flesh and give pain. She wanted him to feel the pain of having your heart torn apart, like she had felt that night, so many years ago. _

"_Onee-chan?" she froze, fear clenching her stomach. Her head snapped around and those flat, icy eyes met the chocolate ones of her younger brother. Her heart nearly stopped at the look of pained confusion in his eyes. "Onee-chan, what's going on?" _

_Breath catching in her throat, she swallowed hard. "Get out of here!" she shouted. The curse mark burned her neck, but she wasn't going to let it take over. The boy didn't move. "Iruka-chan, go!" _

"_What are you doing?" he knew very well what she was doing. She was a ninja, trained to kill. _

"_Your sister was about to kill me, child." Orochimaru said. Masami pressed the tip of her katana into the flesh of his chest. A drop of blood dripped out. _

"_You don't get to talk to him," she spat viciously. "You took our parents! You as good as killed them! You took away his family!" _

"_I didn't take you away." Orochimaru's voice was calm, quiet. "You did that all on your own." _

"_Onee-chan? What's going on?" _

"_I--" Masami started to reply, but she was suddenly hurtling through the air. _

"_You can't do it, can you?" her sensei spat. "You can't take your sword and put it through me, can you?" _

_She hit the ground, bounced and rolled, her katana flying out of her grip as she hit the rocks painfully. _

"_Onee-chan!!" she blinked eyes that were suddenly blurry, trying to get the small figure standing in front of her to slide back into focus. It wasn't working. "Stay away from her!" Iruka, her little brother was standing in between her and death. _

_Not even giving the boy a second glance, Orochimaru shoved him to the side. She didn't hear him hit the ground, or even a pained cry from him. _

"_Pathetic," he hissed, fisting a hand into her shirt. He lifted her off her feet, holding her so that the toes of her sandals just barely brushed the rocks. "You can't even kill me, can you?" _

_Gasping, and trying to get her vision to clear, she tried to fight off his grip, but to no avail. Finally, he dropped her to the ground and picked up her katana. _

"_You were the strongest, most promising I ever trained," he said, sounding almost regretful. "This really is a shame, you know," he lifted the katana and let it start its deadly descent. _

_A blur with silver at the top appeared suddenly in front of her, and she blinked at the sound of metal on metal. _

_Orochimaru chuckled. "Hatake Kakashi," he said with a smirk. "Why am I not surprised?" _

"_You want to kill her, you go through me," Kakashi said, eyes trained on the sannin. "My team is already on its way, including my sensei." _

_Still chuckling, Orochimaru faded into the shadows. _

_Her vision finally giving out, Masami spiraled down the long path to unconsciousness. _

* * *

Nearly a week after leaving Konoha, they arrived at their destination. As Amaratersu's wings stirred the dust from the ground, Masami leapt lightly to the ground and looked around the town.

The others followed after the bird had folded its wings, eyes carefully scanning the small town that lay in the valley below them.

Reaching up to her head, Masami untied her forehead protector and stuffed it in her pack. "Take yours off too," she said, nodding to her companions. "The people of this town are extremely distrustful of strangers, especially if those strangers are ninja," They all nodded, and tucked them away inside their packs.

"Right. Now stay close, don't talk to anyone, and don't make eye contact."

"Why not?" Masami glanced over at Naruto as they started down the hill. "The people of this village are all outcasts. They have all been rejected by their own villages, many of them because their old villages were terrified of them. Many of the inhabitants would kill you as soon as look at you," she held the blond boy's eyes. "So _please_ try not to piss them off."

"Why does this powerful ninja guy live _here_?" Naruto asked as they strode into the town.

He noticed that the noise level dropped as they walked through, but no one approached them. At least, not until they reached what was about the center of town.

A ragged man staggered toward them, eyes bloodshot and a mostly empty bottle of sake in his hand. He pointed at Masami, hand waving about in front of him, sneering. A smirk danced across his face as he stumbled forward, grabbing the young woman's shoulder to keep himself upright.

He chuckled, low in his throat. "Look here boys! We've got us some fresh meat!" He slurred, bloodshot eyes raking down Masami's form. The boys saw Kakashi's hands clench into fists, but he didn't move.

For the very reason that he didn't have enough time. Masami's arm was a blur as she grabbed the man's wrist, shoving it back against his chest. This sent him off balance and would have made him fall over if he'd had enough time. She didn't give him that though. She rammed her knee into his stomach. As the man dropped with a groan and puked in the middle of the dirt street, she pulled a knife from her boot, pointing it at the bystanders.

"Everyone listen up!" She didn't shout, but her voice carried well enough for them to hear her. "If any of you think you can get away with touching me or mine, think again. Anyone does, and they answer to me!" she tucked the knife back in her boot and motioned for them to follow her. She stepped over the gasping man, shoving Sasuke in front of her. Naruto followed her, Kakashi behind him.

On the outskirts of the town, Masami turned walked up to the side of a cliff and frowned, running her fingers over the rock. Muttering to herself, she stepped along the cliff face. Finally she stopped and walked back to where they were standing. "Bastard moved it," she glared at the rocks in front of them, and snorted. "Great," she lifted her hands, and moved them in a succession of seals. She was done before Sasuke could activate his sharingan. Hand glowing, she pressed them against the face. About two feet to her right, a single rock started glowing. Cursing under her breath, she reached out and pressed the glowing rock.

As she stepped back, the entire cliff face trembled. Before their eyes, a section of the rock twice as tall as Kakashi, and nearly as tall as it was wide.

"Woah," turning back to them, Masami grinned.

"Come on," sliding her hands into her pockets, she strode into the tunnel the rock had revealed. Just before she disappeared out of the light, she turned back and looked at them. "It's going to close, so come on!"

* * *

The tunnel seemed to stretch on forever, leading them deep into the cliff, under the very heart of the mountain. They emerged out into a huge cavern, bright light assaulting their eyes. Masami seemed to be the only on not disturbed by the sudden light.

She tilted her head back, cupped her hand around her mouth, and shouted "Oi!" her voice echoed around the huge cave, though it received no response. "Oi! Himura-baka!"

A sudden, furious yell resounded above them, and a shadow raced downward toward them. Chuckling, Masami dove out of the way, rolling to her feet. The figure slammed into the ground, sending a could of dust up around everyone. Coughing, they all tried to spot Masami.

They could hear her laughter ringing off the walls all around them. "Too slow, old man!"

"Not too old, you ruffian! Now come back down here and fight me! I'll teach you to call me baka!"

"Catch me first!" her voice echoed, so it was nearly impossible to tell where she was. The dust settled, and the three men found themselves staring at the old man in front of them.

He was dressed simply, a gray tunic and black pants. Gray hair that was nearly as long as Masami's was pulled back away from his face in a plait at the back of his neck. Large black eyes scanned the cave before rounding on the three behind him. He pointed at Naruto and Sasuke.

"So you're the two boys she wants me to train, eh?" he asked, a smirk pulling at his lined face. "Little scrawny, but we'll work on that one," he stepped forward, his eyes landing on Kakashi. "Wasn't expecting you though," his eyes landed on Kakashi's hair. "But you must be Kakashi," at the surprise in Kakashi's eye, Himura snorted.

"Don't be surprised, baka," he said. "Two years. Two years and everyday there was a new story about you!" he jabbed his finger in Kakashi's face. "Do you have any idea how annoying that is?"

"Uh. . ."

"Kakashi this, Kakashi that," he said in a high pitched voice, making a face and waving his arms about. "Two damn years!"

"Hi-ya!" Masami leapt in, legs scissoring the air where Himura's head had been seconds earlier.

"Still too slow girl!"

"I'll show you too slow!"

"Hold it!" the old man caught Masami's ankle and in a flash, she was on the ground, winded. He shook his head, looking disappointed. "You've gotten weak, bratling," he said, scowling at her. "You've been relying on that jutsu again, haven't you?"

"What jutsu?" Masami asked, looking up at him innocently. His scowl deepened.

"You know what damn jutsu I'm taking about," he said, annoyance seeping into his voice. "That one your idiot Hokage taught you before he sent you to learn from me."

"You mean that really cool soul moving jutsu?"

"No, you idiot! The HEAVEN'S GATE JUTSU!" Masami hadn't tried to get up off the ground. She was still trying to get her breath back. "Your reliance on that stupid technique is going to get you and your friends killed someday!"

Glaring at him, she twisted, flipping and moving so fast she was a blur. In the blink of an eye, she was behind her three companions. "I'm still better than most."

"Better than most means that there is still someone who can kill you," Himura snapped. Masami glared at him, but didn't make any response other than folding her arms over her chest. "That includes your sensei."

"Not if I use the jutsu," she shot back.

"And what makes you think that Orochimaru would give you enough time to use it?"

"I'd make time," she replied. "I'm a lot faster than him."

"You're making excuses, baka," the old man glared at her. "Still the dobe you were when Sarutobi sent you to me."

"Hey! Don't you talk to Masami-sensei like that!" Naruto jumped forward, pointing at Himura. The old man turned his furious glare on Naruto. Amusement slid into his eyes when the boy didn't flinch.

"And what exactly do you plan on doing about it, kid?" Growling, Naruto started to leap at Himura. Sasuke suddenly grabbed his collar and pulled him back, tripping him. Naruto landed with a pained gasp on the ground next to Sasuke's feet.

"Idiot," Sasuke said, glancing down at Naruto, scowl set firmly in place. "If she couldn't beat him, what makes you think you can?"

"But--"

"Would all of you shut up?" Kakashi said, with an exasperated sigh. "Please? This really isn't necessary."

Himura snorted. "I'll show you necessary," he muttered under her breath as he folded his arms over his chest. "Come on. I'll show you to your rooms."

_

* * *

_

_Masami dropped to one knee, bracing herself against the ground with an arm. Her eyes flickered around the cavern, searching for her senpai. _

"_Come on Himura," she whispered to herself. "Where are you?" not left, not right, not up, not behind. . . down! _

_She waited until she felt the slightest vibration in the ground, and then leapt into the air, aiming down at the spot where her senpai broke through. _

"_GREAT FIREBALL JUTSU!" she watched as the ball of flame nearly fifty feet high exploded on the spot where Himura had been. She landed gracefully on the ground, her breath coming in shallow, quick breaths. She had been fighting Himura with everything she had for nearly six hours now, and he seemed to have barely broken a sweat. _

_She heard the whistling sound too late. The katana bit into her arm, and she gasped, eyes flicking to the blade as it tore through her flesh. _

_Then she looked up at her senpai, who was still standing next to her, a grin breaking out on her face. The old man's eyes narrowed, and she held out the arm he'd cut. He blinked once, twice before looking up and holding her gaze. _

"_Boo," the air ripped apart with her clone's explosion, throwing Himura across the entirety of the massive cavern. He managed to twist and soften his impact, but he still bounced and landed on the ground with the crack of bones. _

_Shouting wild curses, Masami dropped down off an overhang high in the cavern, landing smoothly next to her senpai. _

_His breath hissed in between his teeth as she touched a plainly broken arm. She drew back as though burned. _

"_Himura-senpai, I'm sorry!" _

"_Good. . . trick," he managed as he pushed himself up into a sitting position. He grimaced as she took his broken arm in her hands, more gently this time. _

"_Senpai, I'm going to have to set it," she said. He nodded, setting his jaw. In one swift motion, she snapped the bone back into place. Her hands were already glowing with healing chakra. He frowned as he felt his bones slide back together, knitting themselves into one large piece. _

_To have that much chakra after fighting head on with him for this long. . . It was truly frightening. _

_This young woman was frightening. It was no small wonder that Orochimaru had wanted her._

_Smiling wryly, he shook his head. _Should have thought of that before he killed her parents then, _he thought, suddenly scowling. _

"_There," she said, and stood. As he climbed to his feet, he noticed that she was grinning broadly. "So how'd I do?" _

"_I--" he cut himself off as she suddenly dropped to the ground, completely unconscious. "Stupid girl," he said, stooping to pick her up. "Used up the rest of your chakra healing me, didn't you?" she was dead weight in the man's arms. _

_He smiled. Two years, and he'd taught her what he knew, from taijutsu to genjutsu, to ninjutsu, though admittedly, he had kept a few things from her. After all, the look on her face if she ever got to see them would be price enough to pay. _

Masami looked around the room. He hadn't changed it. It was still the same as when she'd left.

Swiping a hand across the top bookshelf, she grinned. Apparently the old man hadn't been bothering to dust either.

She walked over to the 'window' and looked out into the cavern, where Himura had already started training with Naruto and Sasuke. Grinning, she headed out to the field. She _didn't_ want to miss their first session.

Himura scowled as Naruto landed next to him, and struck out, sending Naruto flying. "Faster boy, faster!"

"I'm going as fast I can, you stupid old man!" Naruto shouted, picking himself up. Himura glared at the young man, scowl setting firmly in place. "So lay off, will ya?"

"You're here to learn!" Himura exclaimed as Naruto perched on the top of a rock. "If you don't want to learn, you can scurry back to your village and run home crying!" Naruto glared at him, folding his small arms over his chest.

"I'm not going anywhere. I'm going to be the Hokage!"

Himura's eyes danced. "That you may kid," he ruffled the head of blonde hair and looked up at Masami. "Who knows. Maybe you'll get chosen as a successor."

Masami chuckled. "Right. Tsunade-sama is going to be Hokage for a long time yet."

Himura looked over his shoulder to where Kakashi was sitting against a boulder, intent on reading his book. "That may not be so true. Besides. I believe she has already chosen a successor."

Kakashi glanced up and held the old man's gaze but for a moment before looking back down at his book.

"Kakashi-sensei? No way."

Himura smacked the back of the boy's head, scowling. "I don't know how you can be so brilliant one second, then be so stupid the next!"

"Practice," Sasuke muttered, tossing a pebble at Naruto's head. They glared at each other. "He means that Tsunade-sama has already chosen a successor. Masami-sensei."

The woman in question let out a small squeak. "ME?!"

"Yup," Kakashi said, not looking up from his book. Masami grabbed the lapels of his flak jacket and hauled him to his feet.

"What are you talking about?"

"Hokage-sama asked me a few weeks ago how you'd feel about being named her successor." Her face visibly paled.

"What'd you tell her?"

"You're incredibly unpredictable," she made a face at him and shoved him off. "It's the truth," his hands gripped her hips as she tried to move away from him.

"Oh man, Could you guys at least wait until you're alone?" Naruto muttered. Masami shoved the jounin off and stalked away. Himura just chuckled.

"She hasn't changed a bit."

* * *

**A/N:** Wow... I'm really sorry I haven't updated in a LONG time. I swear I tried to upload a while ago, maybe a couple of months, but it wouldn't do it. Bleh. Anyway, I really hope some people are still around to read this. I'll try to keep posting chapters as I finish editing them. Thanks to you guys who are still here!


	10. Chapter 10

"_What happened?" she asked. The man in the corner of her room turned and looked at her. _

"_We removed the curse seal from your body. It holds no power over your body now." _

"_But how?"_

"_It's a long complicated process kid. Don't concern yourself over it." Jiraiya turned to leave. _

"_It was you wasn't it?" she asked. He looked back at her. "You brought Iruka back, when I was fighting with Orochimaru?" A small nod had her frowning. "Why?" _

"_To keep you honest," he replied. "Orochimaru saw the same darkness in you that we all saw in him, but tried to ignore. He didn't have any family to keep him in line, to teach him to care," she held his gaze evenly, something not many people did. The old man's frown lifted a hair. _

"_Are you saying I'm like him?" she asked. Jiraiya shook his head slowly. _

"_Yes, and no," she scowled at him, and waited for him to go on. "You have a frightening amount of power," he explained. "Perhaps more than he did at your age. You just don't know how to control it." _

"_What can I do?" she asked. Jiraiya eyed her carefully. _

"_I know a man who could train you," he replied. "What you still need to learn can be taught in about two years." _

"_Where is he?" _

"_Answer me first. Are you willing to give up two years of your life away from your brother, away from your friends to learn?" she hesitated. That would mean two years away from Iruka, away from Kakashi. She bit her lip, the image of Kakashi standing in front of her, body trembling in fear as he stood between her and her sensei. _

_She wasn't going to let them protect her anymore. Her parents had protected her, and died. Kakashi and Iruka had protected her and had been hurt. _

_It would never happen again. _

_Jiraiya's expression didn't change when her face settled into a determined glare. "Yes." _

_

* * *

_

_Kakashi looked up at the sky as the wind blew through the gate. Something felt different. His heart suddenly felt lighter, like it had before she'd left. _

_Frowning, his eyes trailed down from the open blue of the sky, and down at the figure walking through the gates. He stopped dead in his tracks, mouth falling open. _

_She'd changed in two years. She was twenty years old now, no longer a scrawny teenager. _

_He wanted to move, to run over and wrap her in his arms, swing her around and hold her until she became part of him, but his body wouldn't respond. The only part of him that seemed to want to move were his eyes. _

_She had grown. Everything about her was long. Long, lean legs supported a longer, leaner torso. The tight black shirt did little to hide her breasts either. _

_Shoving _that_ thought immediately out of his head, he lifted his eyes to her face. There was something different about the look. A smile pulled at the corner of his mouth (not that anyone could see). He looked in her eyes, the eyes of a confident kunoichi, a true ninja. _

_He met her eyes, and a little piece of him died somewhere. _

_He knew right then that she no longer needed him to protect her. She no longer needed _any_one to protect her. _

_But when her eyes lifted to his, and lit up like someone had turned on a switch, he forgot entirely about that small piece. _

"_Ka-chan!" she shouted, and let out a wild yell as she pounced, tackling him to the ground. He laughed, getting to his feet and lifting her into a hug, spinning as she squeaked. _

"_Masami-chan!" he held her as tight as he possibly could without suffocating her. "You're back!" _

"_I'm back!" she held onto him even after he'd let her feet touch the ground again. She made a face, squinting up at him. _

"_You've grown a lot," she murmured. He grinned at her. _

"_And you haven't grown that much," she glared at him, stepped back and whacked him on the shoulder. _

"_That's not very nice!"_

"_Well, whoever told you I was nice was lying," he said with a smirk. She grinned back, eyes lighting up again. _

"_So where are you going?" _

"_Eh, Hokage-sama wanted to talk to me about taking on a group of gennin, again," he sighed. She grabbed his wrist. _

"_Come on! That's where I'm going too!" with that, she took off running, dragging him behind her. _

_

* * *

_

The blond skidded to a stop, eyes searching for the next attack. His breathing was coming out hard and fast.

Another boy dropped down next to him, and took a second to wipe the sweat from his eyes.

"Where is he?" the blond whispered. When the other boy didn't answer, he smacked him. "Hey, asshole! I asked you a question!"

"And I ignored it, dobe."

"Shut up!"

"You're the one who started talking."

"Sasuke!" Naruto tackled his friend as the ground where the older boy had been standing exploded, throwing both of them into the air.

They landed against the cave wall, eyes roaming over the cavern, looking for their attacker.

"We lost him," Sasuke said. Naruto frowned, and closed his eyes. "Naruto, it's too early to use that."

"Just keep an eye out," the blond answered, the seals flying past so fast that Sasuke wouldn't have been able to follow them without the sharingan. Naruto's pupils disappeared, leaving them completely blue as they moved over the cavern. He reached over and gripped Sasuke's arm.

"Ready?"

"Stupid question," the older boy replied.

"Now!" the two leapt off the wall, Sasuke following Naruto's lead. "There!" Naruto threw a kunai into the ground, and Sasuke grinning, grabbing Naruto and spinning. He used the momentum to throw Naruto back away from him, and move himself forward.

His hands flashed in seals faster than Naruto's had, as a smile curled the boy's lips. "_GRAND FIREBALL JUTSU!"_ he released the flames on the spot where the kunai had landed, and let himself be thrown back by the explosion. Someone grabbed the back of his shirt, and the two of them landed, one hand braced on the ground.

A scream broke the silence as the dust settled. The two men looked up, bodies mirror images of each other as they straightened gracefully. "Aiee!" Masami threw her arms around the boy's necks, hugging them both tightly. "You guys rock!" she released them and ruffled their hair.

"Get off!" Naruto said, but he was grinning.

"Yes, yes. Very good," Himura hobbled over to them, hair smoking. "The two of you have learned a lot," his eyes flickered over to the cave entrance. "We have a visitor," he murmured, a smile pulling at his lips. "Masami, if you could?"

Her eyes lit up. "Kakashi-chan?" Himura just smiled. Grinning, Masami took off, throwing her arms around the jounin as soon as he stepped into the cavern.

"You're back!" she exclaimed, throwing her arms around his neck. He hugged her back, pressing cloth-covered lips to her temple.

"Have they finished?" Kakashi asked. Masami frowned at him.

"What?"

"Naruto and Sasuke," Kakashi sighed, ruffling her hair. She glared at him. "Have they finished their training?"

She glanced over at the boys, who were shoving each other, both grinning. "Why?"

"Tsunade-sama wants them back in the village, if they're ready."

"There is nothing else I can teach them," Himura put in, "and I know that they are needed. Events are moving quickly now. Two very large shadows loom over Konoha." The boys had stopped squabbling now, and were watching the old man. "Two large shadows, each looking for a boy."

* * *

"_HEAVEN'S GATE JUTSU!" she cried, and saw the shock on her sensei's face. _

"_Sarutobi-sensei! I did it!" she exclaimed, looking down at the light from her body. _

"_Masami!" she looked up at the Hokage, who looked panic-stricken. She released the jutsu, and the excess power in a brilliant flash of light. Sarutobi looked out the window at the village as it was lit up brighter than day to a stark white color. _

"_What?" he whirled around to face her, anger racing through her. "What'd I do?" Sarutobi swallowed the frustrated yell that tried to escape his lips. She had changed in the years she had spent with Himura, changed enough that she had tried a forbidden jutsu that she wouldn't have had to confidence to try before. _

_And she was still alive. _

_Those huge blue eyes stared up at him in confusion, and he realized that he had been staring at the young woman for nearly a full minute. _

"_Never, __**ever**__ use that jutsu again," he said sternly. She just arched an eyebrow at him. _

"_Why?" she asked. _

_He scowled at her. "It is dangerous."_

"_But I can use it. You saw it. I can!" _

"_I never said you couldn't. But if you rely on this jutsu, even as a last resort, one day you're going to use it without thinking about your intentions, and if you do, it will burn you alive." _

_She swallowed, and nodded. "I won't," she said. "Unless I have no other choice." He eyed her carefully. _

"_I suppose that will do," the Hokage sighed. "Run along home. Your brother is probably wondering where you are by now." _

_He watched her as she scurried out of the room, his face falling as she closed the door behind her. He finally allowed himself to feel the panic, the sheer terror that had come when he realized what she had been doing. _

_That girl. He'd taken her under his wing when Orochimaru had used her, broken her and left. _

_He sighed, rolling his eyes. "Himura," he turned to face the old man in the doorway. His old friend stalked across the room, wrinkled face set in anger. _

"_Sarutobi, so help me! You taught her that jutsu?!" Himura grabbed the front of his friend's robes. _

"_You taught her well, Himura." _

_The other man snorted, releasing Sarutobi. "You're trying to change the damn subject!" _

"_She found the scroll. I answered her questions," Sarutobi replied. "Regardless, you taught her well. She has nearly perfect chakra control now," Himura snorted and folded his arms over his chest. _

"_You need perfect control to pull __**that**__ jutsu off," he replied, still glaring at the other man. "You didn't do so badly teaching her yourself, old man." _

"_I'm not the only one who is old," the Hokage replied. "Care to stay for dinner?" _

"_Alas, I cannot. Your old student came to see me," Sarutobi's face slackened. _

"_Which student?" _

"_Take a guess." _

"_Orochimaru?" _

"_Surprisingly, yes," Himura frowned. "He wanted to check on his _student_," He spat the last word out like poison. _

"_And?" _

"_I threw him out, naturally," the old men eyed each other for a long moment. "How is he?" _

"_Your grandson?" the old man nodded, and Sarutobi smiled warmly. "Quite well, now that you sent her back," the Hokage sat down behind his desk. "Why don't you go and see him?"_

"_I've been gone his entire life, even after his father died." _

"_None of that was your fault. Your son was an exemplary ninja." _

"_Evidentially not competent. Emotionally," he added at Sarutobi's stern look. "Taking your own life is not the mark of an exemplary ninja." _

"_Himura--"_

"_Sarutobi, don't. I am old. Older than you, and I am tired. I am tired of betrayal, tired of the way of the ninja. Many can handle it, others can't. My son couldn't." _

"_Your grandson can. You are his only living family."_

"_I haven't been part of his life since he was born." _

"_Himura, I'm suggesting you talk with him. Tell him who you are," the older man frowned. _

"_Maybe someday," he smiled. "Someday." _

_

* * *

_

Kakashi looked up from his book as Himura stepped into Masami's room, face set and grim.

"She's helping Sasuke pack," he told the old man, looking back down at the book.

"I was not looking for Masami," Himura said. Kakashi lifted his eyes back to the old man's face, and his eyes narrowed in a frown. "I was looking for you," Kakashi's frown deepened as the old man held out a small book, which was closed with a delicate lock. "This is rightfully yours," with that, he turned and left the room.

Kakashi looked down at the book, and closed his own, letting it fall to the bed covers. He stared at the words printed on the cover.

_Hatake_.

His breath caught in his throat, and he leapt to his feet, taking off down the hall after Himura. He caught him at the corner and pinned him to the wall. His headband had fallen off in his haste, so he was looking at the man with two eyes, completely devoid of emotion.

"Where did you get this?" he asked, voice flat, edged with the icy steel he usually reserved for his opponents in battle.

Himura didn't reply. "Your father left you the key," with that, he vanished in a puff of smoke. Jaw muscle twitching, Kakashi turned and strode back to Masami's room, staring at the book in his hands.

He knew where the key was.

"Kakashi?" he looked up at Masami as he walked in. "Lose something?" she held up his headband, which he took, still in a daze. "Are you all right?"

Without replying, he grabbed the neck of her shirt and pulled it aside, gently lifting the necklace she wore over her head.

"Kakashi-chan?" he fingered the key on the thin chain before fitting it into the lock and twisting. "What is that?"

"Every clan in Konoha keeps a record of their history," he said, fingers flipping open the front cover, the chain dangling from his fingers. "Births, deaths, marriages, techniques" his eyes flickered up to hers. "This one is the Hatakte family's," her eyes widened, and she resisted the urge to read over his shoulder. "Himura had it."

A gasp escaped her lips, and Masami's hand flew up to cover them. "Your clan?" he nodded, fingers tracing the edge of the pages as his eyes flashed over them.

"How did Himura get it?"

He didn't answer, coming to the last page with writing on it. He froze, the book tumbling out of suddenly tensionless fingers. Masami dove for it, catching it before it could hit the floor. She flipped open to the page Kakashi had been staring at and shrieked.

"Kakashi!" she slammed the book shut. "This means that--" she broke off, staring at the book in her hands for a long moment. Then she looked up at Kakashi. "Bloody hell," she lunged forward and grabbed his arm, guiding him over to sit on the bed before he collapsed. She cupped his face in her hands, making him look at her. Finally, with a sigh she pushed him down on the bed and stalked out of the room, leaving him staring blankly at the ceiling.

* * *

_She was too late. "Sensei." She threw a kunai into the shield, though she knew it would do no good. "Sarutobi-sensei!" _

_She could hear his voice, soft and distant, but still there. "Where the leaves dance, fire burns. The shadow of the fire will flash over the village and the leaves will grow once again."_

_She couldn't hear anything else, the roaring in her ears was too loud. Orochimaru was killing her sensei, the closet thing she'd had to a father since her own had died. _

_Someone was screaming, and as her world went black, she realized that it had been her. _

_

* * *

_

"Himura!" She grabbed the old man and threw him across the training field. Naruto and Sasuke stopped dead in their tracks, staring open-mouthed at the young woman. "You arrogant, cowardly son of a--"

"Watch your mouth young lady!"

"You don't get to tell _me_ what to do anymore! No more lectures on morals, you bloody hypocrite!" she grabbed the front of his robes and pinned him to the side of one of the numerous boulders. "You hide out here for his entire life! You don't try to contact him when his father fucking died, and then you decide to tell him you his goddamn grandfather by _giving him a fucking __**book**_?!"

"Masami, please understand--"

"I'm not going to understand! I'm never going to be able to understand why you would abandon your own grandson like that! Never!" she gave him one last shove before turning and taking off.

Naruto scratched the back of his head. "What just happened?"

"Himura is evidentially Kakashi-sensei's grandfather," Sasuke replied with a sigh. "And instead of telling him, he gave Kakashi the clan's record book, which includes a family tree."

"Smart kid," Himura muttered under his breath as he sank to the ground. He stared at the ground, and tugged at his gray beard absently. "How'd you figure it out?"

"Well, since my grandparents are dead it couldn't be me. She wouldn't have nearly attacked you if it had been Naruto, so that leaves Kakashi-sensei," Sasuke shrugged. "It doesn't take a genius to figure out."

Himura smiled. "That would be true," he smiled warmly, and leaned back against the boulder. "That would be true."

* * *

The two teenagers stared up at the gate looming ahead of them, their hearts pounding. When they had started their training, neither of them had thought that they would actually make it back to their village relatively unscathed.

Neither had actually realized what coming back would mean.

* * *

"_Idiot." Sasuke muttered, looking around the filthy bar uncomfortably. Masami had already seated herself on one of the high stools, and after ordering a bottle of sake, she looked back at them. "What are we doing here again?" _

"_If you'd sit down. I'll explain," she said, taking a small sip of sake. "The thing is, you're not always going to be fighting other ninja. You need to learn how to react to people who aren't going to fight honorably, aren't going to back down, and may not exactly be entirely sober," she smirked. "So what better place to teach you?" she nodded at the bartender. "Not to imply that those kind of people frequent your place Gar." _

_The man rolled his eyes. "You know better than most the kind of men I get in here, missy," he smirked, shaking his head. "But you can handle them all right." _

_She smiled back at him. "Not today," she glanced sideays at the two boys. "They're going to handle your customers today," Naruto and Sasuke paused. _

"_What?" Naruto scratched the back of his head. 'What are you talking about?" _

"_I'm talking about the two of you protecting me against all the big, ugly, drunk street fighters in here. And I'm not going to help you." She grinned. "I'll be right back," she ducked into the back room for a moment, and the two boys looked at each other. _

"_Do you see a point to this?" Sasuke shook his head. _

"_No." _

_Masami returned, and both boys froze on the spot. All she seemed to have done was let her hair down, but she looked extremely different. Dark hair framed her features, softening them. Naruto's breath caught in his throat. He now knew what Kakashi saw every time he looked at her. A deadly, beautiful, dangerous woman. _

_She sat down at the bar and picked up her drink, smirking at the two boys. "What?" she asked, though she already knew why they were gaping at her. "Stop staring, sit down and have a drink," she rolled her eyes, and muttered something under her breath. _

"_But-"_

"_No buts. Sit," she grabbed the nearest boy, who happened to be Naruto, and shoved him down into the seat next to her. _

_Not five minutes went by before one of the men stumbled up to the bar on her other side, so drunk he could barely stand. "'ave I seen you before?" He slurred. Masami didn't reply. "I swear I 'ave." _

_He leaned forward, squinting at her. "Though I think I'd remember a woman as scrumptious as you," he chuckled, and dropped a hand on her thigh. _

_In a blur of movement, Sasuke swung around both Naruto and Masami, grabbed the man's arm and twisted it behind his back and stopped just shy of dislocating it. The man let out a pained, obvioulsy drunk cry and tried to get away. _

"_Don't touch onee-san again," he said, and shoved the man off. He turned to walk back to the bar, but was suddenly tackled to the ground, pinned under the man's enormous bulk. _

"_Brat! You don't talk to me like that!" Sasuke groaned, completely unable to move. The man was too enormous. _

_A few feet away, Masami raised an eyebrow. "What are you going to do now Sasuke-kun? Not all of your opponents will be honorable. Not all of them will attack you from the front. Many ninja will attack you head on, but others, especially ANBU black ops attack when and where you least expect it." _

_When Sasuke's eyes stared un-focusing, Naruto hopped off his stool, and hauled the man off of his friend. His eyes widened as the man turned and took a swing at him. He ducked and rammed his shoulder into the man's stomach. The man dropped like a rock to the ground, winded. _

_Then he half-turned to Masami. "Are you crazy? He could have died and you didn't help!" _

"_I knew you would," she replied simply, and downed another cup of sake. "Himura has been training the two of you as brothers," they both turned to look at her, Sasuke's eyes refocusing. "The two of you will be an inseparable team by the time Humira is done with you. You'll never leave each other's sides and cover each others backs in everything that you do. That's how it works with a partner." _

_She got to her feet and nodded at the man behind the bar. "Gar," he returned the nod, and Masami hauled Sasuke to his feet, lifting one arm over her shoulder. "Come on nii-chan." She muttered. Naruto ducked under his other arm and together they left.

* * *

_

....wow. I'm really really sorry about not updating! The last time I tried my computer died on me, and I really did forget about this story. Thanks to sakura300000 for giving me a kick in the butt to update this for you.


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